


24 Christmas Tales of Two Idiots in Love

by Rae_Saxon



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Christmas, F/M, Fluff, I COULDN'T KNOW, I was planning this before Spyvember okay, Snow, fairy light bondage, fluffy fluff fluff, the occasional smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:33:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 26,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27817588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rae_Saxon/pseuds/Rae_Saxon
Summary: The Doctor shows up in the Master's console room with a promise of a date and a tomorrow and the Master can't stop himself from hoping. || It's a daily advent calendar type fic
Relationships: Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Comments: 180
Kudos: 113





	1. "Hi there"

**Author's Note:**

> SO!! I planned this before Spyvember was announced and have about half of it already done (it was supposed to be all of it but... Spyvember lmao). The chapters will be shorter (but varying - Today is exceptionally short, tomorrow a bit longer) and it'll be one connecting story, but I'll upload a chapter of what is basically Christmassy fluff every day, yey.
> 
> I know we don't all celebrate Christmas, but it's the only thing I'm familiar enough with to write about. :(
> 
> Plus, I have no advent calendar this year and not any Christmas mood because.......... events I shall not name here because we all know, so I needed this. I hope someone else is happy about it too. HERE GOES. <3

The Doctor was sitting on his console when he walked into his TARDIS, feet dangling in the air in childish abandon.

“Errr...” the Master greeted her, confusion on his face – Usually he was the one awaiting someone in dramatic fashion in their own homes.

“Hi there,” she greeted him back, cheerfully, as she jumped off the console and strode up to him. “Had a nice day?”

“I didn't do anything wrong,” it slipped out of him before he could think about it – He couldn't help himself. He felt like the class clown being called to the teacher, except, for once, he actually hadn't even started working on a new evil plan yet. Was she too early? Was she here to frame him for something the Monk had done?   
  
What the hell was she doing in his ship?

“No, I know,” she beamed, rocking on the balls of her feet so much, it drove him a bit mad.

“Then what are you...” he asked, then frowned, stopping himself as he watched the Doctor pull out a pair of ice skates from her endless pit of coat pockets.

“Giving you these,” she grinned, “for our date tomorrow.”

The Master held his hand out on instinct and took them, before his thoughts caught up to him.

“Wait,” he said. “What? We don't have a date tomorrow.”

“Yeah we do, silly,” the Doctor replied, hands behind her back. “An ice skating date.”

“No... we... What?”

He stared at her, he couldn't help it. He could see the laugh caught in her throat, held back only by her lips being tightly crushed together, a thin, slightly wavering line drawn to a grin.

“Are you trying to mock me or something?” he asked, ice skates falling out of his hands and to the floor. “Is this some funny joke to you?”

He felt rage rising in his chest, hot and overpowering. There was barely anything he hated more than being _laughed_ at.

But the Doctor merely rolled her eyes, her grin fading for the first time now.

“ 'Course not,” she replied shortly. “This isn't a joke, it's an invite. To ice skating.”

“I can't ice skate,” he finally replied, tonelessly, a weird numbness settling over him.

The Doctor shrugged.

“Neither can I. But how hard can it be, right? It's just hanging around on the ice, putting one step before another! I'll pick you up after breakfast.”

The Master, finally, found his wit back.

“Yeah, you do that, love, see who'll open the door to you, because it's not going to be me.”

Snorting, the Doctor headed for the door, turning around one last time with a wink.

“It's not like I needed anyone to open the door for me the first time.”

She left the Master in his TARDIS, staring at the spot she had only just stood on, hearts racing, thoughts confused and the first, quiet flower of hope blossoming. He could murder it, could ruin it, shatter it into pieces or let it happen, for once. And see what the Doctor would do to it – Stomp or water it.

With a sigh, the Master sat down, pulled his phone towards him and started to google how to ice skate.


	2. Ice Skating

The next day, the Master was a nervous mess, walking up and down his entrance door, waiting for the Doctor. He hadn't managed to gulp down a single bite of breakfast, but it didn't matter in any way.

He wasn't going anywhere.

Especially not ice skating.

Especially not with the Doctor.

Especially not in those horrendous pink ones he had brought her.

Please, didn't that old fool have a single braincell in her very, very active brain dedicated to fashion? Pink and purple went awful together!

So, naturally, when she finally knocked on her door, he sat down at his breakfast table, cut open his egg and pretended to have been eating all along, not opening the door at all.

He heard her voice from the other side of the door, far too dully to understand a word, and within the next minute, she simply pushed it open and sauntered in as if nothing at all had been between her and the entrance.

“I... I locked the door,” he called out, completely forgetting his mask of nonchalance. In his outrage, he brushed his plate and made it slide off the table.

“I told you, you need to treat your ship better,” the Doctor hummed cheerfully. She was wearing a rainbow jumper instead of that awful shirt now and a fitting scarf. “You should really put on some warmer clothes, ice skating usually involves ice.”

“I'm not... did you just open the door by talking nicely to.... I'm not coming!” The Master sputtered.

The Doctor giggled and walked over to his coat rack, where the ice skates she had given him were gently placed beneath, ready to go.

“Yeah, you are. Come on. It'll be fun.”

“I'm the Master of Evil and chaos! I don't do fun! Unless it involves murder! Murder is fun! Ice skating is...”

“Is it the colour?” she asked with a heavy sigh. “I thought you'd like pink, it's the closest to purple I had.”

“It's not,” he called out passionately. “It doesn't go with purple at all. Now if you given me blue to go with my shirt...”

“Fine then, mine are blue, we can switch,” she rolled her eyes. “I didn't have any black ones, so I improvised, I did not mean to offend your weird thing for aesthetic. Can we _go_ now?”

“I... well... fine,” the Master finally caved. Not because he wanted to, of course. Just so she'd stop whining like a little child. He grabbed his coat, ignoring her pointed look at her own scarf, and strode back to his console.

“We're taking my TARDIS though. And you better not lead me to some Earth place.”

  
When they stepped out of his ship, he had no trouble recognising the stinky, snow-covered outskirts of London. God, he hated her.

But the Doctor wasn't listening to his protests, she had already grabbed him by the hand – his hand! - and dragged him out into the snow towards a shabby looking building with a glass dome.

It wasn't crowded, thankfully. A few people were on the ice rink, skating in blissful silence, and so he forgave her for dragging her to Earth and put on his ice skates with nothing but a quiet, suffering sigh.

He had to wear the pink ones after all because hers were too small for him and he couldn't help himself – When he looked up at her wide grin, he thought that she'd done this on _purpose_.

It was alright. He'd simply shrink everyone who dared to laugh at him.

Which was probably sooner than he'd expected, because as soon as the Master took his first step onto the ice, he realised how much more difficult this was than it looked in YouTube videos. He immediately had to grab onto the railing so he wouldn't stumble and fall painfully.

The Doctor slid over the ice gracefully, arms spread in a joyful laugh, before whirling back around to him, seeing where he was. The Master, arms and his whole upper body still clinging to the railing, glared at her.

She clearly held back a laugh and skated back, offering him her hand wordlessly.

“Absolutely not,” he grumbled.

A flash of hurt shone in her eyes and he let out a heavy breath.

“If I let go now, I fall,” he pressed out through gritted teeth.

“No you won't,” she promised. “I'll help you.”

“I'll fall!” he insisted.

“No, you won't!” she called out louder. “Give me your stupid hand.”

“No... no stop...” he cried, as she started pulling at his fingers to loosen them around the railing.

An elder woman skated by, smiling at them.

“Ah, is he having trouble?”

The Doctor turned around with a grin, her fingers still between his and the protecting railing.

“Ah, you know how men are,” she replied in sugar-sweet tone and the woman nodded and skated by for another round.

“Always wanted to say something stupid like that,” the Doctor grinned as she turned around to him, her hazel eyes gleaming mischievously. “You know how men are. I've no clue how men are. Not much different from the other 8907 genders of the universe, I'm going to assume. Let go, now!”

She gave it another pull while he was distracted with trying to correct her on the genders – it were 8709 and she knew exactly how much inaccuracy bothered him – and as was to be expected: The Master fell.

“Whoops,” she chuckled as she helped him back up, holding his hand as he carefully tried to stand on his own two feet on the ice. “At least now it's out of the way and you'll be a bit less scared.”

He'd murder her there and then, but sadly he'd just fall on his ass again.

So instead, he let her help him to his first tentative steps on the ice.

“I thought you said you've never done this before,” he muttered grumpily and the Doctor grinned, guiding him forward yet another step.

“I haven't,” she replied. “But it's easy enough, really.”

“Fuck you,” he grumbled, making her laugh.

“Come on, you'll manage. Just pretend it's running. With a bit more weight on your legs. And I'll hold your hand all the time, okay?”

Together, after a while, they got the hang of it. The Master even managed to make the Doctor loose balance and fall sometimes, which clearly was his biggest achievement of the day.

All throughout the day, however, they didn't let go of each other's hand.

And, honestly... Maybe he didn't hate it all too much.

  
It was already getting dark when the Master brought her back to her TARDIS with his own, their hands still locked as they stepped out of the doors and she was smiling quietly at the first few snowflakes falling down as it   
started snowing again.

“Pretty,” she whispered. “Look at the sky.”

He mumbled something.

“What?”

“No stars.”

She looked up again, shrugging.

“They're still there. Just covered right now.”

“So... what exactly was this?” the Master asked, a hand on the door, the other still linked with the Doctor's, who was running her thumb over the back of it.

She leaned over and gave him a little kiss to the cheek.

“I'll see you tomorrow, Master.”

He stared after her with his eyes glazing over, the spot on his cheek where she had kissed him seemingly glowing. It was only after she had disappeared into her own TARDIS, that he blinked and called after her,

“Wait... Tomorrow?”


	3. "Come out"

When the Master woke up on a chilly winter morning, his TARDIS still parked securely on Earth, he kept his eyes shut for a minute or two, thinking back to.... had it been real or a dream? It must've been a dream. What reason could the Doctor have, after everything, to just invite him to ice skating and...

He shifted slightly, wincing from the numb pain that had settled in his muscles.

An eye twitched open, then the other.

A pair of ice skates was parked next to his bed, his butt felt clearly bruised from all the falling down he had done, his muscles ached and from his bedroom window he could see gentle snow falling steadily, snowing him in.

Alright.

Not a dream.

Completely surreal, but somehow not a dream.

For some reason, out of the blue, the Doctor had shown up, and.. taken him on a date? Was it a date? It certainly seemed like a date. That ice skating woman had thought it was a date. The Doctor had kissed his cheek and... and...

_See you tomorrow._

The Master jumped upright in his bed, wincing but otherwise ignoring the pain of the sudden movement and grabbed his phone.

Noon in Earth terms. Okay, okay, there was still time. Not that she had given him any time, but there was time, right? There had to be time.

He raced out of bed and through his TARDIS for a quick shower. Worked on his hair to give it that perfect fluffiness he did just for her. Put on his carefully flattened outfit and got the coat ready, just in case.

And then the Master sat down on the sofa and waited.

And waited.

It wasn't that his day revolved around the Doctor. It wasn't that he had not anything to do. It wasn't that he actually wanted her to show up. He could, _would_ , leave any minute now and just let her knock on thin air. Like a good arch enemy _did_.

Somehow, however, he was still sitting still, unmoving, waiting for the Doctor.

After a few hours, however, he finally had enough.

Energetically, the Master jumped up, ran towards the console and... grabbed his phone to text the Doctor.

**Listen, if you're planning on teaching me more sports, at least have the decency to let me look them up beforehand.**

He had hit send too fast and immediately regretted it, staring at the screen with his tongue between his teeth. What if he had understood her wrong? What if she had just been messing with him? Maybe she wasn't coming at all. Oh God, what if she wasn't coming?

But before his insecurity could grow into full-blown panic, his phone announced the Doctor's reply.

**Come out.**


	4. Snowball Fight

The Master put on his coat and almost raced out of the TARDIS, eyes frantically looking for the Doctor when she wasn't standing there. If she wanted him to come, then why wasn't she... was she making fun of him?  
  
Something cold and and wet hit him on the cheek.

The Master let out a growl deep, deep in his throat.

“Oh no, you didn't,” he muttered, before ducking down and getting a hand full of snow. “You did _not_ just challenge me.”

He turned towards the direction the snow ball had come from and there she ran, trying to change positions, but she wasn't going to be fast enough.

He hit her with his ball to the back of her head, making her squeak and hop a little in her run.

“From behind!” she called. “Just how I know you.”

The Master snorted, he couldn't help it.

“That you do, love.”

Quickly he grabbed another hand of snow and started moving, always keeping an eye on the Doctor as he planned his next strike.

She was quick, he had to give her that, but he was the strategic one of the two, and, quite frankly, better practised in hitting people's blind spots.

He had not considered, however, the Doctor's quite annoying ability to always be a step ahead of him. As he was still turning to keep an eye on her, she hit him right to the chest.

“2-1 for me!” she cheered, hands in the air and the Master reacted immediately, firing his ball to her cheek.

“I believe you meant 2-2,” he snickered.

“Oh, you just wait!” she called back, moving through the snow like an excited puppy. “I'll get my lead back.”

The Master grinned, grabbed a bit of snow from the closest bushes and started forming it.

“All you'll get back is some snow in your mouth.”

She turned around only for the fraction of a second, but he reacted swiftly and got another throw right between her shoulder blades.

“Hah!” he called out and she turned around to him with narrowed eyes.

“Fine, if you want to play dirty, I can play dirty.”

He was still busy trying to come up with an innuendo to reply with, when she charged towards him, a determined look on her face. The Master's eyes widened and he tried to take a step back, but she was already on him, tearing him into the snow. He landed on his back while the Doctor landed... well... on him.

He could feel the cold seeping through his coat but he couldn't exactly complain, not when he could feel the Doctor's weight on his, her body heat still keeping him far warmer than it should, her eyes gleaming and her breath hot on his lips... so close, she was so close...

And then she pressed a handful of snow right into his face.

The Master spluttered, spitting out the snow and felt cold water running down his beard.

“You're evil,” he brought out with hoarse voice. “You're evil and you're framing me as the villain.”

She laughed and his hearts almost gave out as she leaned down to press a soft kiss onto his lips.

“For warming up,” she winked, then finally slid off him and offered him a hand. “But I feel like maybe some hot chocolate was more effective?”

“Hot... Oh. Right.” The Master let himself be helped up, still feeling a little drowsy and stood there, for a few seconds, just sheepishly staring at her, before realising he should probably be leading the way.

He walked towards his TARDIS, listening to the Doctor's steps behind him intently and only when he was sure she was following, his heart rate dropped a little. He held open the door for her with his most charming smile and threw her a blanket on the way to the kitchen.

When he came back, he was carrying two steaming cups of hot chocolate and she sat on the sofa, completely wrapped up in the blanket, only her face looking out through a little hole she had left open.

He rolled his eyes.

“You didn't even lie in the snow. Give me a corner.”

Reluctantly, she let him pull at the blanket and wrap it around the both of them, but immediately launched for her hot chocolate and took greedy, large gulps.

Stupid little sweet tooth he had caught himself.

“I'll want a re-match later, you know that, right?”

The Doctor grinned.

“You'll just loose again. You always loose.”

She leant against his shoulder with a little yawn.

“That's entirely untrue,” the Master replied, even though he could not actually come up with any example for not having lost.

Though right now. the Doctor slowly falling asleep on his shoulder, he had to admit, felt a lot like winning.


	5. Do you want to build a snowman?

The Master was not surprised when he woke up the next morning to the Doctor sitting on his console, waving excitedly.

He hadn't bothered even leaving the battlefield of their snowball throwing match, hadn't bothered to disguise his TARDIS and at this point, he was beginning to suspect he'd just stay here forever, pathetically waiting for the Doctor to return.

Right now, however, she was here, offering him a bag of warm chocolate chip muffins and a takeaway cup of steaming hot chocolate.

He took it with a puzzled expression on his face.

“You know that I have a kitchen in here, right?” he asked and she grinned.

“You know what happens when I enter a kitchen, even if it's just to get breakfast, though, right?”

Touché.

He supposed he should be flattered she was concerned for his safety. And thoughtful enough to bring breakfast to whatever weird activities she had planned for today.

“So what's it gonna be today?” he asked, as he took a sip from his hot chocolate, wincing at how sweet it was. “Petting zoo? Reading to sick children?”

“All excellent suggestions,” she replied, diving a hand into his bag and munching from his muffin. “But no.”

He tilted his head sideways and inspected her coat pockets to find that, yes, indeed, there was a similar snack bag already safely stored in, contents doubtlessly already discarded (into her tummy).

The Master of all time and space firmly conquered back his chocolate chip muffin.

“So I thought,” she said, her eyes still looking on his muffin rather than on him. “We'd build some snowmen today.”

“Snowmen?” he asked with a certain amount of indignity in his voice.

“Snowmen. Snow-women. Snow Time Lords. Whichever you'd prefer, really,” she shrugged. “No need to settle on a gender.”

“That's not what I was... You want to... I meant...” he spluttered, face all crunched up and she grinned.

“Come on, it's gonna be fun!”

“Fun...” he repeated, fairly sure he had heard that before.

“I'll let you have all the good noses!”

She pulled out a little bag full of carrots and buttons and the Master sighed.

“Well, you've come prepared. You never come prepared. So I'm gonna assume there's nothing to get me out of this, is there?”

She shook her head wildly, a gleeful grin on her face when it was still again.

He took one big bite from his muffin, then set it down and headed for his coat.

“Then let's go,” he sighed. “Get it behind us.”

How long could it take to build a damn snowman?

Probably longer than it had taken the Doctor to jump for the rest of his muffin and gulp it down in one, big bite.

  
For a while, he simply stood there, watching her crawl down on the floor ridiculously, as she started rolling a handful of snow into a huge ball.

Dignified, he finally sunk into a squatting position and looked down onto his own patch of snow.

Fine, she wanted it this way, she'd get it. He'd build the best snowman she had ever seen!

  
Concentration was something that usually came easy to the Master. He could forget about everything else while he was focusing on his schemes and preparations and the precise, dangerous work they usually required to reach perfection.

He did, however, tend to work alone for that exact reason.

Without inane babbling following his every move.

“Look,” the Doctor called, clapping her reddened hands excitedly. “He looks already so much like you with those buttons!”

For what he assumed was the fifteenth time, the Master looked up from his snowman, which, thanks to the Doctor's constant interruptions, was nothing but two big balls of snow waiting to be put together, and found himself looking at a round head of snow with large, dark brown buttons pressed in.

“It doesn't,” the Master replied tonelessly.

“Yeah, he does! Look!”

She added some black little pebbles by pressing them into the snowball and sorting them into something he guessed was supposed to be mouth-shaped, with the corners facing downwards into a grumpy expression.

“One hundred percent you,” the Doctor announced proudly.

The Master stared at it, not noticing that the corners of his own mouth had sunken into an equally grumpy manner.

“It's not! My eyes aren't that large! Plus they look kinda cute with those buttons and I'm not cute, I'm threatening and evil!”

“They are though,” the Doctor beamed back at him. “All big and soft and with those long lashes! Haven't you looked into a mirror, ever?”

The Master very intentionally narrowed his eyes at her and she giggled.

“Still cute.”

Standing on her tip toes, she pressed a kiss to his forehead, her hands wrapping around his neck – He could feel the cold and wet of melting snow run down his back and found he didn't mind terribly much.

“Any other cute facial features I should know about so I can banish them forever?” he asked flirtatiously against her lips and the Doctor grinned.

“All of you. Unusually cute this time around. I guess that's why O worked so well.”

“Mhm-mh,” the Master hummed, wrapping his arms around the Doctor's waist _tightly_. “Liked him, did you?”

“'Course I did,” she muttered, smiling softly. “He was you.”

He kissed her, because he couldn't stop himself, his hearts beating wildly and the Doctor leaned into it immediately, cold fingers back around his neck and with a little, un-villainy squeak, the Master flinched back from her.

“Gotta get you some gloves,” he laughed and raised his hands to present her his own old, black leather gloves.

The Doctor beamed.

“So nice of you, thanks!”

Before his mind could catch up, she had pulled his gloves off his fingers and buried her own inside them, before casually turning back to her snowman.

The Master stared at her for a minute, completely speechless, while she pretended not to notice him, barely registering the wide grin that was starting to spread on his face.

He turned back to his own snowman and started to get into sculpting it. Within an hour or two the Doctor had resorted to deem her two-ball-round-thing finished and was sitting on a tree stump, her feet drawing patterns into the snow impatiently as she watched him.

He had just finished creating an utter masterpiece of a snowman.

Shoulder long blond hair, presented by straw, was framing soft features he had carefully edged into the hardened snow, the outline of a coat collar visible beneath and into a little pocket he had sat for quite some while, he had stuffed the green of one of the carrots the Doctor had brought.

“Look honey,” the Master announced with a gleeful tone once he was satisfied with his work, whirling around to her to find her eyes on him – as they should be, as he liked them. “It's you! How you looked like the last time you stole my leather gloves.”

The Doctor grinned as she stood and inspected her easily recognisable, cricket-loving, foolish past-self.

“Yeah,” she replied with a wink. “Or so you think.”


	6. Santa Baby?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there - Very sorry for my lack of replies, I appreciate every comment so much, but am also currently sitting at a train station to upload this from a wifi Hotspot because my home wifi got suspended without any warning or reason why. I'll try my best to keep the chapters coming somehow until this is fixed. If I don't manage, you know why at least.. Very sorry. 
> 
> Also, sorry if the formatting is off, I had to type the whole thing into my phone and upload it from here. All the love.<3

It wasn't that the Master had gotten used to having the Doctor around.

Or was expecting her to come back.

It was just that he liked to be prepared.

That's why he was a little gutted, really, when the tea he had made for her went cold, standing there, stale, on the table he had left it on that morning, until the sun sank down and he finally gave up, pouring it away.

It was a bit rude of her, quite frankly, to show up every day, making him dread the one she'd stop again, return him back to normal with a metaphorical fall back on the ground.

Bit like ice skating, just infinitely more painful.

Which was why, when it knocked on his door half an hour later, he jumped off his sofa immediately, dropping the book he was trying to read on the floor and slid on his purple, slippery socks towards it, tearing it open.

"Doc... what?"

He stared at her, his mouth falling open.

"Are you... okay?"

"Hohoho!" she called out, voice contorted to a deep roar.

"Do you... is that... a new outfit or something?"

She stepped inside, obviously unbothered by his reaction and the Master let her, backing away from her quickly, while narrowing his eyes and trying to find her underneath the huge, white fake beard that was almost covering up her whole face.

She was wearing a red Christmas hat with white seams and an outfit consisting of a clunky coat and trousers in the same colours and... _oh no._

"No, Doctor, no, why," he called out. "Come on! If you're gonna dress up as Santa, at least do it with a sexy Santa costume!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" came the Doctor's normal, if offended, voice from underneath the dead animal in her face. "You don't think I look sexy in this?"

"What?" the Master asked again, tone falling into incredulous disbelief. "No, of course not!"

He didn't. Refused to tell her that -She looked sexy to him no matter what.-

The Doctor stood still in his console room at that, mouth (probably, he couldn't tell for sure) hanging open in shock.

"So am I hearing this right?" she asked, danger clearly audible at the edges of her voice and the Master felt himself shrink a little. "You'd rather I wouldn't wear the costume?"

"I..." the Master brought out, suddenly not sure anymore how to reply. "I... yes?"

The Doctor made a swift movement and he backed further away quickly, convinced that she was about to punch him - Angry Doctor was always a reason to be on guard, really, he had learned never to underestimate that state.

But instead of punching him, she was tearing off the beard and revealed a wide grin to him, before letting her fingers wander down to tear off the rest of her clothes, until...

Oh.

A grin grew on the Master's face.

"Now that's more like it, love..."

Her underwear was... still ridiculous, all red and white and fluffy just like her coat and trousers had been, but it was underwear and the Master felt like he was on safe terrain again, slandering closer with his eyes fixed on her body.

"Thought it might be more to your taste," the Doctor grinned, waiting for him to reach her, before jumping into his arms, arms and legs wrapping around him as she kissed him, all happening so fast, the Master couldn't do more than catch her with a little laugh before her lips were already on his.

"Woke up with a mood, did you?" he hummed against her lips, enjoying the feeling of just having the Doctor all around himself, eyes fluttering shut for a moment.

"Its because you're so cute," she giggled and he let out a low growl, nibbling at her lower lip.

"Don't you start that again," he warned her. "Or I show you just how un-cute I am."

"Oh no," came the theatrical reply. "I wouldn't want _that_."

He grabbed her by the hips and stumbled backwards with her, throwing her carefully down onto his sofa before crawling over her, leaving gentle bites in his wake up her neck and back to her lips, where he kissed her harder this time, devouring her until she was moaning beneath him.

He let his hand slip up her chest, tearing off the (horrible) underwear - hopefully she didn't have more of those - and twisting her nipples firmly, before weighing her breasts in his hands.

"Merry Christmas," he hummed into the crook of her neck, his hands wandering further down, slipping into her panties, probing at her wet folds.

"Actually, not even close to Christmas yet," the Doctor breathed back, grinning. "But I decided to have Christmas the whole month. We deserve it."

The Master blinked, freezing above her.

The whole month? Was that a promise? An actual time window he could work with and prepare himself before she left him for good again?

The Doctor was wriggling her hips against him impatiently, trying to gain some friction and he suddenly realised that he'd forgotten all about moving his fingers.

With a little shake off his head, the Master came back to himself, giving her a quick, hopefully soon forgotten kiss to the forehead, before pushing a finger inside her. She bit her lower lip beautifully for him, holding back a moan and when she released it again, he could see the indentations, staring at them transfixed, finding he wanted to leave his own.

Kissing her lips, he added a second finger, moaning quietly into her mouth and she did too, and for a second, they just lay there, still, forehead to forehead, smiling at each other.

"Okay," he finally murmured, feeling oddly at peace. "Okay. Christmas a whole month. Sounds good."

He pulled put his fingers and she raised her hips slightly, brushing against his erection with a grin.

"You didn't have a choice in the matter, silly. But I'm glad you approve."

He pushed into her carefully, trying not to hurt her, for once in his life following an urge to leave her whole, but she didn't seem too bothered. She wrapped her legs around his hips, trying to pull him down and deeper inside her and he complied, letting her lead him eagerly, all promises of showing her not-cute momentarily forgotten.  
  
Right now, he felt oddly soft. Right now, he wanted nothing but to feel her, as long as deep and _real_ as he could.

She could snap him into two like this with just a word, but she didn't, she didn't.

"Good?" she asked instead and the Master realised then that he had to seem oddly quiet to her and oddly gentle, but he couldn't help himself. He thrust into her slowly, deeply and when he was done hiding her face in the crook of her neck, he looked up at her with tears in his eyes, tired of hiding them away.

She raised a hand, wiping them away with a smile.

"Hi there, Kosch," she said, greeting him like a friend she hadn't seen in a long time, and maybe she was - His breath got stuck in his throat, for a second.

"Hi," he replied when he found it back, thrusting again, needing to be inside her as deep as he possibly could and he could've screamed in relief, when she finally opened her mind to his, inviting him in - He had almost forgotten what was missing until he felt her gently embracing his and sinply allowed himself to fall into it.

When they both had come, they simply laid there like that, wrapped up in one another, mind and bodies, unable and unwilling to seperate again and for a few blissful hours or days or maybe just moments, the Master remembered what it was like to not be afraid.


	7. Breakfast at Master's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks guys <3

They had done sex a couple of times over the centuries, though, never again like this. Never with that many feelings and tenderness involved, not since they'd left Gallifrey.

And he couldn't remember the last time he'd woken up the morning after with the Doctor still lying next to him.

What did one do in a situation like that?

For a second, the Master just panicky lay there, arm still looped around the Doctor, her face so close to his, he would barely have to move to kiss her again.

And she looked so relaxed, so _peaceful_... As someone who had dedicated his life to making her feel the exact opposite, he hadn't expected the view to make his hearts race like this.

He could see every line on her face, every pore of her skin and it was unfair how conventionally beautiful she was this time around – Usually she was beautiful in a very Doctor-y way and people only tended to notice when they got to know her better – He had the advantage of always knowing her. Always seeing her beauty.

But right now it was overwhelming him.

With a quiet little groan to himself, he turned his head, then attempted to roll out of bed.

To his surprise, the legs she had had resting between his, suddenly clung to him like a vice, refusing to let go.

He tugged at his own leg gently, trying to shake her, but in consequence she only held onto him tighter.

“Hey,” he laughed, finally figuring out that she was most probably not asleep anymore. “Let me go.”

“Nope,” came a quiet, sleepy response from where the Doctor's head still lay unmoved.

“I could make you breakfast,” he offered with a little smirk.

“Or you could stay here and put your arm back around me,” she replied, still refusing to open her eyes.

“I...” he started, not sure what to say.

She wanted him to stay in bed. With her. She wanted him to not leave, even for breakfast. She wanted him...

What was he even doing?

“Fine,” he breathed, so quiet, he wasn't even sure she could hear him, before he lay back down next to her, both arms wrapping back around her warm, slender body and, would you look at that, she even moved to roll closer to his chest, snuggling up with a little happy smile.

He ran his fingers gently through her hair, played with one of her blond strands, flicked at her earrings carefully.

“Ever told you I like those?”

She hummed happily.

A month, he remembered. She'd promised him a month. A month of this, them, together, doing this? He thought having her leave was probably going to kill him, but right now, it felt incredibly worth it.

The Doctor's stomach growled.

“Okay, that's it,” the Master said with a little laugh. “I'm making you breakfast.”

Her eyes tore open as he gently laid her back down onto the mattress and she clambered to the edge of the bed after him, hands missing him for a second, before she finally got a grasp on his arm and pulled him back firmly.

“No, no, no, no, stay!” she whined, sounding like a little child and the Master couldn't stop himself. He took her face between his hands and kissed her hard.

“I'll be back, with tons of bacon and egg and pancakes and some tea, yeah? And then we can cuddle all morning.”

She bit her lower lip in apprehension.

“With syrup?”

The Master snorted.

“As much syrup as you want.”

“Bring the whole bottle,” she said and he grinned, giving her another quick kiss before leaving the room.

“Hurry!” she called after him and for a second he wondered if she wanted him or the food back, but then found he didn't particularly care.

“Promise.”

  
“You're an angel,” she greeted him when he returned with a tray full of breakfast, proving to him that she would shamelessly say _anything_ for food. “A hero. A...-”

“Shut up and eat before it gets cold,” he laughed and let himself fall down next to her, munching on a slice of bacon.

She was back in his arms within a second, sneakily putting the tray on both their laps, as she leant against his chest from the side and he found he was perfectly fine just having breakfast with one hand, as he wrapped the other around her shoulder.

Of course she was practically burning the breakfast to the ground next to him, but he managed to secure three slices of bacon before she had eaten that away from him, too.

“So... a little hungry, huh?” he asked as she piled all the empty plates onto one another, making sure they were all covered in syrup to her satisfaction.

“Mhm-mh,” she hummed, pulling him back down to the bed. “Now we won't have to get up until lunchtime though, right?”

He could do nothing but kiss her head softly, feeling like if he answered her right now, his voice would simply give out on him. And so he slid down back into lying position with her instead, locking his arms around her tightly, his eyes pressed closed as he simply enjoyed the feeling of getting to hold the Doctor.

It had to be enough of an answer.


	8. Mulled Wine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hello, after 3 long days of suffering without wifi, here I am, back again. It returned just as I was about to pack my laptop up and head for the train station again lmao Thank you all so much for your comments while I was gone, they were a joy to catch up on. <3 And hey. I didn't break the schedule. The schedule is unbroken. I am happy - And look who's also happy:

“You know what?” she asked after a few hours of comfortable snuggling in bed, with music and books and all kinds of kisses and a tiny bit of sex in between.

“Mhm?” the Master hummed, pretty sure he'd agree with everything and anything right now, if only it meant she'd stay right here.

“I actually had a whole day planned for today. You completely broke it with being so damn comfortable.”

“More snowball fights?” he asked with a grin. “Want me to give you another chance?”

“No, no,” she raised her hands, laughing. “I think one deafening defeat is enough... for you.”

“Excuse me?” he asked, sitting up straight. “I clearly won.”

“You did not,” she replied, teasingly kissing his nose. “But that's okay, we're used to that. No, actually, I thought we'd visit some Christmas markets.”

The Master looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, then shrugged.

“Okay.”

“Okay?” she asked, apparently stunned. “No discussions? No, 'but Doctor, that's just not me, I gotta be evil'? Not even a little grumpy face?”

“Nah,” he grinned and fished his shirt off the floor. “Let's go.”

  
They took a shower together, giggling like pre-teen lovers the whole time, clinging to each other as if they were utterly unable to take a step without another and he felt like a kid again, all butterflies and adoration. Truth was, he'd follow her anywhere right now, his role, their division, all forgotten right now, with nothing left but her face, the wrinkles she got when she smiled, the little marks he had left on her soft skin.

Luckily, he didn't have to follow her quite as far (for once). She took his TARDIS a few weeks into the future and dragged him out of it excitedly, running through the little snowy park they had been standing in towards the nearest buildings.

“It's right down a few streets,” she grinned, already slowing down and pointing at every window that had lights out. “Look, look, isn't it beautiful? All those pretty lights.”

It was a bit ridiculous – She had a TARDIS that would take her anywhere in time and space, could see every supernova, watch the most beautiful spectacles in the universe again and again, and here she stood, the force of the cosmos, in awe over a few Christmas lights.

“It's a bit of plastic on a string,” he offered helpfully. “And the simplest form of electricity.”

She nudged him in the side.

“It's beautiful! Everything's so quiet and peaceful, the lights look pretty in all the snow and people are with their families, having a nice time. Love Christmas, me.”

He looked at the way her wide eyes shone in the lights of the nearest garland, as they were completely transfixed by it and decided that, _fine_ , maybe they had something beautiful about them after all.

  
When the smells and gentle music of the Christmas Market swept over to them, even the Master warmed up to it. He took a few more breaths than necessary, the mix of chestnuts, sugar, mulled wine and something garlic filling his nose and making him giddy in anticipation.

The Doctor seemed to feel just the same way – She had grabbed his hand and started dragging him the last few metres towards the market, where they dived into the crowds and walked from stand to stand. The Doctor's eyes never stopped wandering, widening and awing at everything they saw.

“Look at them, the little figures,” she called. “Humans are just so creative, don't you think?”

He didn't particularly care about any of the stuff they sold except for the food. He made a point to get a little of everything for them, watching the Doctor eat with abandon and he had to give the bloody human race that much – They sure knew how to make good food.

“Oh, mulled wine!” the Doctor announced after a whole, huge slice of garlic bread. “We gotta drink mulled wine, it's important for every Christmas Market experience.”

Somewhere next to them, people nodded enthusiastically and the Master, with a sigh, pulled her with him to the Mulled Wine stand before she decided to make new human friends.

“I'm so full,” he whined as they stood at the little table with their full cups. “I don't think I can eat a single thing ever again.”

“So worth it, though,” the Doctor giggled as she took a sip from her cup.

With a sigh, he did as well, marvelling in the hot sweetness running down his throat.

“'s good, isn't it?” she asked, beaming and the Master couldn't help but beam back at her.

“Yeah. It's not too bad.”

“I'm glad you came. Really. Didn't even have to beat you into it.”   
  
The Doctor smiled over the rim of her cup over to him and the Master shook his head with a little grin.

“It's nice. With... with you.”

“Oh, wow,” the Doctor laughed. “Sounds like I gotta give you mulled wine more often, if these are the admissions I get out of it.”

The Master didn't have it in him to tell her that he was drunk on something else entirely.


	9. Sledge rides

When the Doctor picked him up the very next day, he wasn't nervous or surprised or anything but ready, really.

He'd made her breakfast, some hot chocolate and dragged her inside before she could drag him out, shoving the plate towards her with a light smile and a grunt.

The Doctor grinned and sat down, eating with visible joy on her face and when she had eaten a few of his pancakes, she even had the decency to pretend she was full to offer him a half.

He ate it, eyes never quite leaving her and cringed at the amount of syrup she'd poured over it, watching her giggle at the face he pulled.

Bloody hell, it was a miracle she still had teeth in her mouth.

“So, what's the plan for today?” he asked with a sigh, heavily swallowing to get rid of the sweet, sticky pancakes in his mouth, before shoving the plate back to her, watching her happily devour the rest.

“Oh, I opted for something you'll definitely like,” she grinned. “How does sledge riding sound to you?”

The Master looked up with interest.

“Down long, curvy, steep mountains?” he asked, full of hope, and the Doctor frowned.

“I thought more of cute, innocent hills? Not too.. uhm... deadly?”

“Oh,” he murmured. “Sure that... that works too.”

“We'll still have fun,” she quickly reassured him. “Just without... without the death wish.”

“That's fine,” he nodded. “I don't... I mean. It sounds like fun.”

“We can share a sledge,” she tried again, realising his reassurance didn't _quite_ sound sincere yet.

“You mean... I sit behind you and wrap myself around you the entire way down?” He raised his eyebrows, a grin spreading on his face and the Doctor nodded eagerly.

“Yes, that was pretty much the idea.”  
  
“Hills sound wonderful.”

Laughing, the Doctor finished her breakfast, took a last sip from the hot chocolate and got up.

“Off we go then, we've got a bit to walk.”

He didn't ask why they didn't just materialise there. Instead, he wrapped himself up in warm winter clothes and followed her out, where two sledges were already waiting for them. He kicked one of them aside innocently and the Doctor shook her head, slightly amused, as she picked up only one of them and started leading the way.

“Come on, then.”

He hurried after her, quickly grabbing her hand, just because he could and because it was soft and warm and had he mentioned that he _could_?

Walking through the snow was weirdly peaceful. Cold water was seeping through his shoes and he didn't care, just watched the Doctor's footsteps beside his as she walked with him, chattering about everything and nothing, her free hand waving through the air, gesticulating wildly, her other hand never leaving his.

“How does that look?” she asked after a while, as they came to a halt. The Master looked up to where she was pointing. A little hill was snaking itself downwards, framed by snow-covered trees and some fences, but mostly free to slide down from.

He smiled at the sight.

“Looks like fun to me.”

She turned his head towards him with her eyes suspiciously narrowed.

“You're just excited to cling to me, aren't you?”

“You're so cute,” he replied with a shrug. “How can I ever control this urge to just hold onto you and never let go, huh?”

She gave him a little slap against the cheek, fingers cold against his skin, then kissed him quickly.

“You're an idiot. Let's go.”

They stomped up the heel and the Master had to admit, that part made him a little bit happier about the fact that this wasn't a very steep mountain. The walk was exhausting enough as it was. But when they'd reached the top and he looked down, his hearts felt light and excitement made his skin prickle.

The Doctor was right, thinking this was far more up his alley than building snowmen or going ice-skating. This was adrenaline, this was action.

They climbed onto the sledge and she was so close to him, he could feel her hearts beating through her back, as he sat down behind her, arms around her waist instead of the sledge, chin resting on her shoulder so he could see. She was warm against him and he could feel the same amount of excitement radiate from her that he carried himself.

That was just what he loved about her, wasn't it? The way she'd open up to every adventure with a laugh and dragged him right into them with her.

God, he'd missed them having this kind of fun together.

With an excited look down the hill and one last push, they sled down the hill in full speed. The Doctor was crashing against him and he just clung to her, laugh spreading inside him, bursting out of both of them as they raced down the slope, past trees and clouds and fences, all turning into a white-brownish blur around them.

“Woohooo!” she called out, hands rising on their own accord as they reached the ground and she would've fallen over head-first from the abrupt stop, if the Master hadn't pulled her back with a laugh, hands so tight around her, he felt like he could squeeze some organs out of her, but she didn't seem to mind. Instead, she let herself fall against him, breathless, cool skin against his cheek and it was perfect, so perfect.

For a second, they just sat there like that, panting, _happy_.

Then she grinned.

“So... again?”

And he jumped up, reluctantly letting her go, picking up the sledge.

“Again.”


	10. A carriage ride

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I'm only uploading this late, I spent the last few hours screaming thank you prayers at the sky because Taylor Swift is releasing a new album but I think I've calmed down enough to upload now!

He was more nervous than usual as he waited for the Doctor to show up the next day, but it was alright. He'd be alright.

Just a little bit of pacing, just a little bit of bracing himself for disappointment, just a little bit of trying not to think about how _out there_ he was, now more than ever.

But when the Doctor finally arrived, leaning in the frame with his leather gloves on, his treacherous hearts beat quicker in excitement and joy, as if they weren't part of him anymore, weren't as scared at the sight of her.

“Hey, are you ready?” she asked, grinning widely at him in that charming. goofy way she always did. “I thought today we'd...-”

“No.”

The grin fell off her face and she entered the TARDIS properly, her steps hesitant.

“No?”

“No,” he shook his head and watched, with rising horror, how her expression darkened.

“Oh,” she breathed. “Oh. You don't want to anymore. Okay. Uhm...”

The Master felt his throat constrict and for the first time since all of this – whatever it was – had started, he realised that he was not the only one scared and nervous and _vulnerable_ in this.

He quickly grabbed her hand when he realised that she was about to turn around and leave.

“Will you stay you bloody idiot? I'm saying no because it's my turn.”

“Your turn?” she asked, brows furrowed deeply, as she turned back to him. “What do you mean?”

He smirked.

“Means I'm the one with the plans today and you're coming along with me.”

“Oh.”

They looked at each other for a second and the Master pinched his eyes shut, just for a moment, bracing himself, then raised his other hand to take hers.

“Whatever... whatever we're doing here, I'm in, Doctor. I'd go to the end of the universe with you. Thought, quite frankly, I wouldn't know why, we've already been and it's a bit dull...”

She shook her head ever so gently.

“Right. Yes. Back to the topic. I was gonna say. You don't need to worry about me backing out, is all.”

A little smile played around her lips.

“I was more worried about what your plans entail, to be honest.”

There he stood, in the middle of his TARDIS, hands still holding his arch enemy's, slightly confused at the implication that he'd have plans she needed to worry about and with a light giggle, she raised a hand to his cheek, let it run down his chin and through the stubble of his beard.

“What is it then? Flesh-eating Santas? Poisoned candy canes?”

“Huh?” he asked and finally, his mind caught up to what she was saying and he let out a loud, undignified snort. “No, I... Doctor,” he laughed. “None of that. Come on, I'll show you.”

He quickly slipped into his coat, then took one of her hands again, unwilling to let her go, his hearts beating at the thought of her not coming along because she thought of anything evil coming her way. Instead, they stepped out into the, by now, familiar patch of Earth he'd parked his TARDIS on, cool afternoon air and the smell of snow hitting them full force.

It was already dark – Perfect for his plans. With a wide grin, he led the Doctor down a slightly twisty path between trees, until they reached the clearing he had prepared.

He watched her proudly as her eyes widened for a second, before she tore off his hand and ran ahead, beaming as she looked at his surprise from all sides.

“Carriages!” she called out. “You... you...”

Her hands immediately found the closest horse and she patted it affectionately, then hugged it tightly.

“Ohhh, carriage rides, that seems nice!”

“Hey,” the Master called out with a laugh, stepping closer. “Why is the horse getting the hugs?”

“Well, Lily here is going to draw us, isn't she?” she replied with a frown. “Someone has to say thank you and it's surely not gonna be you.”

“Her name's Hayley,” the Master sighed, as he stepped next to her, his hand gently patting the horse's snout and when the Doctor attempted to reply, her mouth already open, he simply interrupted her with an eyebrow raised. “Don't you start, I'm not one of your pets, I know you don't _actually_ speak horse.”

The Doctor shut her mouth with an affectionate little grin.

“Don't listen to him, Lily,” she whispered to the horse in confidence, making the Master roll his eyes. “He's just jealous, that's how he is. Thinks just because I love anyone else, I won't have enough for him.”

Above her, the carriage driver was giving a heartily laugh.

“Well, this is a lady just after my tastes.”

The Master gave him a sour look, just as the Doctor conspiratorially bowed her head towards him.

“He's paying you, right? He's not hypnotised you?”

“Are you coming now or not?” the Master asked loudly, opening a carriage door while the driver gave her a confused look and the Doctor whirled around with a grin.

“Oh, absolutely.”

He stretched out a hand to help her in and in return, the Doctor stretched out her tongue and climbed in by herself, making him laugh out loud when she slipped on the icy step and fell back down into the snow.

“Oh, shut up,” she mumbled, while the Master climbed in, still chuckling.

He offered her his hand from the inside now and she ignored it again, this time making it inside, turning to him with a proud grin that he couldn't help but press a kiss onto.

“Hard to believe you're the person saving this planet on the regular.”

The Doctor pointed at him with a grin, while the carriage slowly started moving.

“It's funny you're the one saying that because...”

“Yeah, yeah,” the Master sighed. “I know. I'm the idiot who constantly gets stopped by the guy who can't step into a carriage without falling.”

Laughing, she leant against him, face tilting upwards in expectation and he wouldn't have been able to resist indulging her even if he had, only for a single second, thought about trying.

He kissed her gently, eyes falling shut for a moment. He still couldn't believe it, not fully – That he really sat here, with the love of his lives and the constant thorn in his side, being able to just hold and touch and kiss her.

Within seconds, however, she had pushed herself all over his lap to glue her head to the window, completely ignoring the one on her side, looking out with enthusiasm.

“So, where are we going?”

“Uhm,” the Master replied. “Does... does it matter?”

She turned back to him with a grin.

“You've no idea, have you?”

He shrugged, his mouth suddenly feeling dry.

“I just told him to pick a romantic route, honestly. You enjoyed the Christmas lights and all that stuff so much and I thought... I mean...”

The Master, feeling nervous, rubbed the back of his head and she let herself fall back slightly, now sitting on his lap, legs dangling down sideways.

“It's perfect,” she beamed. “I love surprise trips.”

A little breathless, he wrapped his arms around her hips, watching her look out of the window with childlike joy, while the carriage driver once in a while threw concerned gazes at them at the sight of the Doctor sitting literally anywhere but in her seat.

The Master couldn't mind less. If he was being honest, his lap might actually be the safest place she could ever sit in – Right now, he wouldn't even let go of her if the force of three explosions hit them.

  
She got even more active before she got quiet, a bit like a child, really. Hopping from one window to the next, pointing at beautiful sights of the forests and villages beside them, babbling non-stop about something it reminded her of, regularly distracting the carriage driver – or, how they all knew now, Jonas – with random chit chat she gave while leaning out of her window, until she finally actually sat down on the seat beside him, head sinking down to rest in his lap.

She had a smile on her lips as she just lay there, eyes opened, then closed, hair falling into her face and the carriage gently rocking her body. The smile was still there when he leaned down to kiss her temple and was still there when the tour stopped close to his TARDIS again and he gently shook her awake.

“Caught yourself a sweet lady there, sir, if you don't mind me saying,” Jonas said with a little tip of his cap, when he opened the door for them.

The Master helped a sleepy Doctor stumble out of the carriage safely, before he turned to him with a gentle smile.

“You can't catch this one, she comes to me whenever she feels like it. I'm the lucky one, I think.”

They slowly walked back through the snow to his TARDIS, the Doctor heavily leaning in his arms, yawning contently and he almost carried her into his bedroom, stripped her of her shoes, scarf and gloves before tucking her in, his hearts still beating wildly at the thought of falling asleep next to her, like it was something so forbidden, so unthinkable, so glorious...

But the second he hesitantly lay down next to her, she had rolled back into his arms, head on his chest and a content look on her face and the Master felt some of the tension slip from him.

This was, somehow, reality and he was going to enjoy it while it lasted.


	11. Christmas Presents

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It seems that no matter how determined I am to give you all pure fluff, one chapter of pure angst always sneaks in. At least... it's behind us now, huh? That's good... right?!

It was difficult to find something the Doctor would like on a normal day. Honestly, he knew her better than anyone in the universe and still, this was frustratingly hard. That woman could get excited over things, seemingly random things, that he felt absolutely nothing for. The other day she had gushed about Christmas lights as if they were special – Should he gift her Christmas lights? No that seemed... that seemed so common.

He'd once gifted her a whole Cybermen army but that, somehow, hadn't been it, either.

She was complicated. Lights on string and plastic. Celery. Stupid scarves. Glasses she didn't have to wear. That's what she got excited about.

Supernovas? Cybermen armies? A whole society created on her suffering gone? Nothing but a mild look of annoyance, some rude insults and a yawn.

So what could he do? She wanted to celebrate Christmas and he would have to do it right. He was determined to do it right. Was determined not to give her a reason to leave him again.

And so the Master sneakily talked her into a trip off her beloved Earth, promising he'd be aiming perfectly when returning, not having lost a day and not moving a centimetre off the spot. She didn't quite believe him – honestly, rude! She was the one constantly getting it wrong – but she had agreed and was now contently walking alongside him through the market of his favourite trading planet.

Tons of stuff from all over the universe, all offered in different stands, people running after them to compliment for this and that and offering additions, only exquisite ware for as far as he could look – If he didn't look too hard into the shabby corners, that was.

The Doctor, however, had never been known to look away.

“Look at that!” she smiled, pointing at a little plush Dalek. “Davros would be so annoyed knowing I have one. What do you think?”

“I think it's a bit rubbish,” he replied after a moment of hesitation, rubbing his neck awkwardly. “What would you even do with it? Haven't you seen enough Daleks in your life?”

Down the aisle were whole booths full with exquisite foods, metal sales and devices so strange, even he couldn't think of all of them. And here she stood, sulking about a green plush Dalek.

He had hoped she'd see something she liked and he could get it for her afterwards. But he couldn't get her a bloody plush Dalek for Christmas! That was just ridiculous.

“I... fine,” he muttered and paid the trader with a heavy sigh. She clutched it to her chest, beaming and the Master found he could only shake his head in what turned out to be mild amusement. “Fine. But it's not coming onto our Christmas Tree, just so you know.”

“Ohhh,” she smiled. “We're having a Christmas tree, are we?”

“Well... Later. I figured. Yeah.”

“Sounds good to me,” she stretched to her tip toes next to him, pressing a little kiss to his cheek as they walked.   
  
The Master blushed furiously.

Here? Where everyone could... see? She didn't mind that? People here knew his reputation, even, had heard of the things he'd done. Hell, some of the materials for those things, he'd acquired here and she just stood here, kissing him.

“What's wrong?” she giggled. “You've not blushed like this for a while.”

“I'm not... _shut up_ ,” he whined, pushing her away gently and she laughed.

“What did you want to get anyway?”

“Get?” he asked, frowning.

“Well, that's what you came here for, right? Buying something?”

“Oh. No. I just thought you'd... like a visit. Ever been here before?”

She shrugged.

“Never quite have the time for shopping tours, but I've seen it, I guess.”

“I'm pretty sure they sell some Gallifreyan wines somewhere,” the Master offered with a smile. “You've always liked those.”

To his horror, the Doctor paled.

“Oh,” he muttered, cursing himself for bringing it up. Why mention Gallifrey. Of all the things, _you absolute, utter fool,_ why mention Gallifrey?

“I think we'd be better off in the alien food session,” she suggested with a weak smile, pulling him behind her towards a stand offering several fruits and candies from a variety of planets. “So much to explore.”

He bought her a bit of everything, just to ease the rising ache of guilt sitting between his hearts as he watched her put up a facade. She was thoughtfully chewing all the time while they walked over the market, barely talking, barely looking and with a sigh, he suggested they'd give up for today and walk back home.

He'd ruined it. He wasn't even been sure what it hadn't been, yet, but whatever it had been, he'd already ruined it.

The Master quietly held open his TARDIS door, watched her walk in quietly and quietly went to his console, setting in coordinates to... to...?

He looked up, caught her looking at him and quickly let his eyes flicker down again. The silence wrapped heavy around them and he just wasn't sure what to do. Going back to the same spot almost preposterous now – There weren't going to be any more visits and if he went back there, she'd think he expected there to be, she'd think... she'd think...

His breathing had quickened and his sweaty hands were curling to fists beneath him.

“Hey.” Her voice was gently as she stepped closer, a hand on his arm. “It's okay.”

“No, it's not,” he breathed back, finding his throat restricted, finding himself unable to talk clearly.

Was he... was he having a panic attack?

Her hands found his, gently pulling them off the console, fingers intertwining with his, as she turned him to face her. His mouth was dry, his eyes unable to meet hers, but she didn't let that stop her.

“I knew what you've done going into this,” she reminded him. “It's not like it's something I had forgotten, alright?”

“But...”

“Don't you but me, Mister.”

He frowned in confusion, finally bringing his eyes up to meet hers and found warm hazel looking back at him.

“ _But_ ,” he said, with even more emphasis. “How? Why?”

“Listen. It's in the room, I know it is, but can we not do this right now? I just want one month. One month of peace, of not talking about this, of just me and you, having fun, eating alien candies that explode on my tongue and and... be normal.”

The Master felt like there was a pit in his stomach. A month. He'd had hope in, against his will, that she might want to stay longer, that this might be something... something more but it was a month of... of holidays. For both of them. He needed to remind himself that's all it was.

At least, he thought, at least it wasn't ruined yet, right? At least it wouldn't end here.

“Yeah, okay,” he replied, voice still sore.

“Good. Now you try one of these...” She swiftly slipped a piece of candy into his mouth and the Master pulled a face. How could something be sour and sweet _and_ taste of beetroot at the same time? “It'll cheer you up.”

He was sure the only time he'd ever be cheered up again was the moment he could spit this out, but he chewed it dutifully, making the Doctor giggle.

“Now I _know_ you're serious, that stuff is disgusting,” she brought out between laughter.

He swallowed it down with an accusatory look (and a painful wince), making her laugh even more.

It was good. It was all good. He could still send her home with a laugh on her lips. And that's all that mattered, right?


	12. A Christmas Tree

She took him on a trip through London that day, hand firmly in his and a smile on her lips that was only partly frozen.

He wasn't really there, was the thing. Couldn't quite reach out to her again like he had before. Something inside him felt wounded and ached whenever he thought of using it.

But the Doctor wouldn't let go of her plans. Instead she stopped before a little, fenced in market for Christmas Trees, pointing at them with a forced little grin.

“Here we go! You promised me to set one up.”

“I did no such thing,” he muttered, but with a sigh and a determined expression being shot his way, he stepped towards the man selling the trees.

Honestly, spending any time on any planet with the Doctor was making him poor. That woman never carried any money on her and all his (granted, stolen) credit stocks were getting thinner and thinner.

“Which one would you like?” the man greeted them with a smirk. “You're early so you get to pick.”

He opened the little fence for them and the Doctor walked in with wide eyes, running around the market like an idiot, turning and walking around every tree to investigate them from all sides and angles.

“Yeah,” the Master sighed towards the salesman. “This is gonna take a while.”

The man just watched the Doctor with an amused smile on his face.

“'s okay. I like someone who can appreciate a good tree,” he said, just as the Doctor pointed at the ugliest, most shrivelled tree and called out “That one!”

The salesman's eyes widened.

“Uhm. That's... supposed to go the shredder, actually. I put it aside to...”

“I want it.”

She was turning to the Master's, that look on her face he knew would leave no space for disagreement.

He tried anyway.

“Really?” he asked hopefully. “That one? Not the pretty, full, green one over there?”

“No. That one.”

She walked closer towards the poor tree, her eyes gleaming down at it and the Master felt his shoulders sink.

Speechless, the salesman looked from the tree to the Master and back again.

“We'll... have that one, then,” he said with a resigned sigh.

“R... really?”

“Yup,” the Master replied dryly. “You heard it. She wants it.”

“I heard it,” the man stammered. “But I don't understand why.”

The Master pulled out some money and held it out to him.

“I'll take it that'll be enough?”

The man snorted.

“Keep your money, mate, you can have that thing for free. You're actually saving me money by getting rid of it for me.”

“Brilliant!” the Doctor beamed. “Pleasure doing business with you! Come on, Kosch, gimme a hand.”

The Master leaned his face towards the salesman and, with a long-suffering tone in his voice, whispered, “She's got a saviour complex,” before he obediently stepped up to the Doctor, grabbed the thin, miserable stem of the tree and helped her carry it out of the market place.

“I do,” the Doctor whispered as she passed the salesman, grinning widely. “And I've got good ears, too.”

The Master couldn't quite hold back the grin coming to his face, as they left behind a flustered, stunned salesman and carried the ugliest tree through the city he had ever seen.

  
He waited until she was busy in the basement of her TARDIS, looking for something to decorate that damn pathetic tree with. He could hear her knock several things to the floor, could hear glass shattering, all while she hummed a Christmas tune cheerfully and unbothered.

This was gonna take a while.

With a light smile, he grabbed the tree and vanished with it into his TARDIS.

  
When he re-materialised only a few minutes later, she was already waiting for him, leaned against her TARDIS with her arms crossed and a scolding expression on her face.

“Leaving anywhere without me is against the rules,” she reminded him.

“You never gave me any rules,” he replied, face leaning into hers as he kissed the tip of her nose and to his relief, she seemed mildly appeased by that.

“Where'd you go?” she asked, her tone turning into curiosity and instead of replying, the Master walked back into his TARDIS, bringing out a beautiful, big, dark-green tree, looking like everything a Christmas tree _should_.

The Doctor's face turned into one big sulk.

“I didn't want a new tree! I wanted that one!”

The Master grinned.

“It's the same tree. Scanned it, found back where it originated and got it a bit earlier in its timeline, when it's in its prime. That's fair, right?”

“That's...” She frowned. “I'm not... sure.”

“Confused by your own rules, are you?” he smirked.

“I... “ She was still staring at the tree. “So it's the same one?”

“The same one, just happier. We can decorate it. And it's gonna look pretty.”

She looked from the tree to the boxes piled up next to her, to the Master and back to the tree, then resigned to her fate with a shrug and a grin.

“Sounds like fun to me!”

The Master threw his hands up in victory – For about one second, then she gave him a dark glare and he quickly helped her carry in endless boxes of decoration.


	13. Fairy Lights

“Okay, so!”

She stood in the middle of his TARDIS, facing the tree.

“There's three boxes just with tree decoration and the other five are general decorations, you know, just a few basic ones.”

“A few basic ones...” he muttered under his breath, holding back a smirk. “Sure. Just a few basic five boxes.”

She whirled around with an excited grin.

“Don't worry. They're bigger on the inside.”

Of course they were.

With a sigh and shake of his head, the Master turned towards unpacking the boxes – He knew trying to discuss this would just prolong the inevitable.

“Why are we doing this in my TARDIS again?” he asked, pulling out an exhaustingly long cord of fairy lights.

The Doctor, carefully sorting masses of Christmas baubles after colour – pretty much every colour he'd ever seen – smiled.

“Well, you need something pretty in your life, sometimes.”

“I've got something very pretty in my life,” he reminded her, stopping his attempts of unravelling the fairy lights for an intent look into her direction.

Her eyes flickered up to him just long enough for him to know that she got the compliment, then she looked up with her tongue between her teeth and beaming at him.

“So, which colour do you want to decorate with?”

He raised an eyebrow pointedly.

“Do I actually get a say or are you just being polite?”

“I thought blue, silver and gold would go _great_ together,” she replied, very carefully ignoring his question and the Master smirked.

“I'll request a bit of purple. You decide the rest.”

“Blue and purple?” she asked with a frown, looking down at the baubles. “Not sure that works.”

The Master froze, fairy lights in his stretched out hands as he looked up to her with a sharp glance.

“Excuse me?”

She looked up confused, thinking for a second before it clicked and he saw her widening eyes lock on his shirt.

“Uhm. It kinda works for you. Promise.”

He gave her a sickeningly sweet smile.

“Look, Miss Rainbow is talking fashion.”

“Hey! My rainbows are great!”

“Yes, and so subtle and stylish, you, covered in them on what seems like every inch of your body. Seams of your coat weren't enough, huh?”

“There can't ever be enough rainbows,” she replied, sulking slightly and the Master grinned.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah!”

“Well, in that case... let's wrap you up properly.”

With a swift swing, he'd thrown the fairy light over her shoulder, whirled her around had her completely intertwined in them, unable to raise her arms.

“Hey!”, she called out, a laugh caught in her voice and he used the remaining cord to pull her closer, pressing a kiss to her lips.

“What is it, darling?” he asked innocently. “Never too much rainbows, you said. Now, I just gotta turn them on...” He hit the little battery powered switch and watched the Doctor glow in beautiful shades. “Perfect.”

She was giggling beside him.

“Stop that and unwrap me.”

“Oh, I don't know,” the Master smirked. “I could set you up instead of the tree. Just put you into the corner and have you light up the whole room. You look _awfully_ pretty.”

“You'd get bored with it. No one to challenge your stupid plots.”

“Ah, but on the other hand, I always have liked you tied up.”

He held the cord close to his chest, pulling her into another kiss and the Doctor, wonderfully, moaned against his lips, eyes fluttering shut.

“And apparently so do you,” he grinned, smugly.

She rolled his eyes and the Master turned around, wondering if there was any comfortable space to explore this notion a bit more thoroughly, but when he had turned back to her, she was already free, the fairy lights lying on a pile beneath her feet.

“Did I ever mention that I was friends with Houdini?” she asked.

The Master didn't even look at her, his eyes were still pinned miserably to the pile at his feet.

“Untangling this is going to be a pain.”

“Your own fault!” She leaned forwards, kissing his cheek. “Tell you what. We set up the shorter set and you... uhm... keep these for safe-keeping in your TARDIS.”

He raised an eyebrow, looking up at her with a wide grin.

Oh, they were going to have the best of nights.

“Deal.”

  
He had to admit, after many hours of decorating, his TARDIS looked pretty. He had to catch the Doctor two times from falling off the tree, before he'd given up and shoved her aside to fasten the decorations himself.

“I don't hate it,” she commented on the purple, blue and golden baubles. “You were right.”

“Cause I was.” He pulled a few green needles out of her hair. “I know what looks good.”

“Everything's so comfortable now.”

She whirled around the console room excitedly and he supposed she had a point. There were golden shimmering lights set up everywhere, snow flakes and stars dangling down, it looked... homely?

“You know there's just... one thing missing.”

“And what's that?” the Master asked, dreading the answer from the look on her face.

With a swift move, she pulled something out of her pocket and rushed towards the Christmas Tree, climbing back onto the leather and placed that bloody, damned plush Dalek right at the tip of it.

“I hate you,” he told her, when, instead of simply walking down the leather again, she let herself fall into his arms.

“Then why'd you catch me?” she asked, eyes gleaming and sighed heavily.

“Because I really want to see what happens after we showed Davros the photos, mostly.”


	14. Snow Angels

He hadn't even had to talk her into staying with him that night. With their two ships so close to another, they could touch, she'd stayed up with him until late night with the thin excuse of wanting to see all the pretty lights at night time.

She'd gone out and wrapped their both TARDISes into fairy lights that would probably tear as soon as one of the materialised and something about it made his hearts beat faster.

And then she'd fallen asleep on the sofa with him, practically lying on top of him, chin resting on his chest like a content cat and he'd pulled a blanket over both of them and simply gone to sleep.

That way, they woke up the next morning, intertwined, content and _complete_.

When he opened his eyes, he was already looking into her sleepy hazel ones, gleaming down at him.

“Hey there.”

“Hey,” he greeted her, blinking, before carefully sitting up, both hands wrapped around her so he didn't throw her off. Suddenly, she was sitting in his lap, both arms wrapped around him and even though his back hurt and his hearts threatened to attempt beating out of his chest, he sat completely still, face hovering close to hers, a tired little smile on his lips.

“Slept okay?” he asked but she was already kissing him, closing the gap with the slightest lean into his direction and he reacted immediately, changing position by knocking her backwards and now he was on top of her and they were making out like when they had been teenagers. Just kissing and touching and _feeling_ each other.

It had been years, maybe decades, maybe centuries, since he'd last treated his TARDIS like a home. Now he woke up on his far too narrow sofa with the Doctor in his arms and beautiful lights all around him and all he could think of was that this was right where he belonged.

They cuddled some more, just because they could. Just because there was no place for the Doctor to be, to run to, to save, just because there was no human pet to drag her away from him, just because he hadn't messed anything up with a plan for so long. And for the first time, the warm realisation trickled into the Master's consciousness that if there'd just be a promise of forever, like the ones they'd made so many, many years ago under the night sky of Gallifrey, he'd be fine with that.

“Any plans for today?” he asked, brushing her hair to the side gently and she yawned.

“I mean, I guess. I left my list in the TARDIS though, so I'm not sure what's due.”

The Master snorted.

“You made a list?”

“Yup, got the whole month planned out. Of course you messed it up when you started making plans yourself,” she smiled. “'s fine though. Doesn't really matter.”

“If it doesn't matter, why'd you make the list?”

“To be with you, silly. That's what matters. Being with you.”

She yawned again, hiding her face in his chest like a little kid and he let his fingers run through her hair thoughtfully.

“Hm. We can catch up on the stuff we miss afterwards.”

Something inside of him twisted painfully in horror at what he'd just said, but another part, a far more hopeful, foolish, childish part he hadn't indulged in centuries, kept his hearts racing and his eyes pinned to the back of her head.

The Doctor raised it with a smirk.

“Yeah, I suppose. Pros of being Time Lords – We never really lose time. Hey, wanna go outside? Play in the snow a bit?”

She'd not said no to spending more time with him.

The Master nodded, not because he'd listened, but because he was too enthusiastic not to say yes to anything and everything right now and then immediately regretted it when she rolled out of his arms and onto her feet, smiling down at him.

“Well, come on, then!”

“Oh,” the Master murmured, staring down at his empty arms sadly and the Doctor giggled.

“Well, catch me then.”

They hadn't taken off their clothes last night and so she just shot off, picking her coat off the floor and running outside, her hair tousled up and her shirt creased. He shook his head, looked down on himself, decided he'd definitely need a shower, several eggs and a fresh shirt, but he knew there was no time.

He'd chase the Doctor for long enough to know she could be gone with the blink of an eye.

With a low growl of annoyance, he swung himself off the sofa and after her.

  
The cold hit him like a shock when he stepped out. He'd just woken up and morning cold was the worst. What was she making him do?

She was jumping from foot to foot not far from him, her cheeks already puffy and red.

“I did not think this true,” she giggled and he rolled his eyes.

“Can't we go inside again? Where it's warm?”

“In a minute! Look, it must've snowed over night. The snow is so pretty and fresh and white!”

“It's... yeah. We can look at it from inside. I'll make a window appear.”

It did look pretty. Not pretty enough to throw himself into the snow like the Doctor now did, however.

She was lying on her back, arms stretched and started moving them.

“You'll catch your death,” he commented dryly.

“I'm making snow angels! You should try it!”

“Listen,” he sighed. “I know you're determined to enjoy this no matter how cold, out of mere principle, but we can just... enjoy it after a hot shower. And some breakfast. Right?”

“Look!” She jumped up, completely ignoring him and pointed at the pattern she'd left in the snow. It did look a bit like an angel, he supposed. with a lot of fantasy. “You should make one, come on!”

“I don't know. I'm not really the angel kind of guy, love,” he smirked at her, pulling her into a gentle kiss. Her lips were cold and trembling beneath his. “Just so you know, if you catch a cold, I won't be the one to take care of you.”

She grinned against his lips, giving him another soft peck on the lips.

“Yeah, you will. Now...” With surprising strength, she shoved him down to the ground, “make an angel!”

He tried to get up again, the cold and wet already seeping through his cold, but she was on him within a second, sitting on his hips with an evil smirk.

“We can have that shower you wanted after,” she promised. “But I think it should at least be worth it. You gotta move your arms through the snow! Like I did.”

She was tugging at one of his arms with both her hands, trying to make it go up and down and the Master saw his chance, grabbed a hand full of snow with the other and pressed it right into her face.

“I owed you,” he explained with a grin as cold ice water ran down her forehead. “Plus, we want it to really be worth it, don't we?”

She got off him with an icy glare and when he finally got up too, brushing the snow off his coat, she noticed her looking down at the pattern he'd left behind.

“Looks like your angel's got a broken wing.”


	15. Cold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for the record, I think no matter how often I do it, I will never feel *good* at writing smut, so we all just gotta live with it.

“I feel like I'll never be warm again,” the Doctor whimpered, trembling beside him even underneath the steady stream of hot water.

The Master sighed, pulling her into his arms, pressing her to his chest possessively.

“It's your own fault, you know that, right?”

“Shhhh,” she made, snuggling up in his embrace. “Less talking, more warming me up.”

He rubbed his hands over her shoulders, feeling her shiver and tremble against him.

“First I want you to say that I'm right. Come on.”

“Shut up.” She tried to wriggle out of his arms but he held her close.

“Come on, you can do it. You were right, Master, I should've listened to you. It's not hard.”

She was still grumpily fighting against his hold, when he let a hand wander down, brushing her bare thighs and for a moment, the Doctor stilled against him.

“Well, do you want to be warmed up or not?” the Master grinned and with a sigh, the Doctor turned around in his arms, shoving him against the shower wall and kissing him hard.

Breathlessly, he kissed her back, hands in her hair, pulling her as close as he could manage and he remembered, for a tiny second, that she still hadn't said it... but who cared, right?

Next thing he realised there was hot breath on his neck, hot water running over him, a hot body pressed against him and she wandered down with her lips kissing every bit of bare skin, hands roaming over his body until they reached...

He gasped, unable to hold himself back, hands on her head as she kneeled down before him, breath nuzzling his half-hard cock.

“That wasn't quite what I had planned,” he tried with hoarse voice. He could've gently nudged her back up with the hands he had on her head but he couldn't quite bring himself to do it. “I was supposed to warm you up.”

The Doctor, a cheeky grin on her face as she looked up to him, licked her lips.

“I feel warmer already.”

He was falling back against the wall, head leaning against the cool tiles as her lips wrapped around him, warm and wet, leaving him to see stars from a sudden rush of pleasure.

“Do... Doctor..”

“ _Told you to shut up,_ ” she replied, straight into his mind and the feeling of her presence inside of him sent him spiralling.

She did... something with her tongue, let it run underneath the base of his cock with sloppy, wet noises and he felt his knees weaken. Did she even know what she did to him?  
  
“ _I have a general idea_ ,” came an unbelievable smug reply and he couldn't do much more than breathlessly _chuckle_.

“You're incredible, you know that?” he asked, fingers in her hair tightening – If it was painful, she didn't complain, just let her head bop for- and backwards, taking him deep inside of her and god, if he could stay like this forever, hot water running into his eyes, washing away the sweat building on his body and the Doctor wrapped around him and inside him and everywhere, the feeling of her all over him like the shower water, he would, he would, he would.

 _Goddammit_ , he thought, as he came inside her mouth, not sure whether she heard him or not and not caring even a little bit. _Goddammit, I love you._

She came back up with a grin, kissing him tenderly and he could taste himself on her lips and that was as it should be, right? Him and her and no one else.

For a second they just stood there, forehead against forehead, panting, smiling, then he felt her tremble and with a dark glare, turned off the water.

“Come on, we gotta get you warm and cosy.”

He wrapped her in a towel, rubbing her dry without letting her protest, wrapped his own towel around his shoulders and firmly led her out of the bathroom. Cool air hit them and she shuddered in his arms.

“You should at least let me put on my clothes,” she whined but he just kept on leading her through the corridors of his TARDIS.

“Your clothes are soaked,” the Master reminded her and pushed open a door to a comfortable living room, sitting her down gently before a fireplace. He nibbled at her earlobes gently, whispering darkly, “And you won't need your clothes,” before he got up again, grabbing the biggest, warmest blankets he had.

He gave them to her and she quickly disappeared underneath them, sitting down on the carpet before the fireplace, while he stoked the fire.

“That's kinda romantic,” she smiled as the first flames started rising out of the ashes. “Fireplace in winter.”

“Well, you know me,” he grinned, as he sat down next to her, pulling her into his arms. “I'm known for the romance I bring into people's lives.”

“Eh, you're not bad at it if you try,” she grinned, kissing him softly.

“Better?” he asked and she nodded. “Good.”

With a swift move, he'd pressed her down into the carpet, climbing over her with a wide grin, deepening their kiss and the Doctor, glorious, beautiful Doctor, was lying spread out on the blanket, moaning for him.

He kissed her breasts, every bit of them, sucking gently on her nipples, teeth grazing them, before he wandered down, biting his lips with a little grin.

“I feel like I owe you.”

“Well, you don't have to if you don't...”

He slapped her gently on the stomach, head already between her thighs, hot breath hitting her clit and she gasped above him, legs unintentionally closing around him, locking him in and the Master smiled before diving in. She tasted of soap and arousal and Gallifreyan summers in red grass and he couldn't get enough of it, let his tongue run through her eagerly, sucking on her clit, watching her squirm beneath him as her moans got louder and more frantic.

She came against his tongue, soaked and trembling but for entirely different reasons now and the Master was chuckling affectionately when he climbed back up to her, kissing her with a sigh, before wrapping them back up into the covers, his arms firmly locked around her.

How the hell did he ever get this lucky?

“I love you too, you know?” she whispered after a while of them just happily watching the fire and the Master scoffed.

“You just came, of course you love me.”

“No!” She rolled on top of him, his face between her hands as she kissed him, again and again, her eyes never leaving his. “No, I _love_ you, you absolute idiot. Always have. Always will.”

He wasn't sure what to say, wasn't sure if his voice would carry him, so he just let her kiss him over and over again.


	16. Baking biscuits, or something similar

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Depression is clawing at me and I'm slowly trying to claw my way out, but energy and motivation to write or communicate are incredibly low right now, so please bear with me. <3

He woke up to the smell of something burning.

It wasn't the good kind of burn, the familiar smell of demons weeping and falling into ashes before him, it wasn't the smell of chaos and destruction that had determined his lives for so long, no, this was worse, so, so much worse.

It came from the kitchen.

With a groan and stumbling, still disoriented steps, the Master rushed towards his kitchen, naked feet tapping on the metal grating, but not loud enough to tune out the sound of the Doctor _humming_.

Oh God, this was bad, this was so bad.

He stormed into what had once been his kitchen as fast as he could, but he could see with one sweeping glance that he was too late.

“No,” he whined, voice still low from the sleep. “No. Doctor. Why.”

She stood in the middle of the room, a bowl with... something in her hands, grinning wildly, as if there weren't patches of biscuit dough all around the room – Dripping from the walls, on the top of his shelves, in her hair, blocking the sink...

There was flour on the floor and he almost slithered to the floor on it. There was still dark smoke coming out of his oven.

“Doctor!” he repeated. “I had one rule! One rule!”

“You did?” she asked, tone innocent, but even she, even she in her absolute ignorant bliss, couldn't be unaware of the mess she had created. “You never told me! What is it?”

“To stay out of the kitchen,” he spit, feeling a wave of rage at her oblivious acting but she just grinned.

“That's a shame, I made such lovely biscuits for you!”

She pointed at the bowl. What she called biscuits were stone-hard looking, slightly blackened clumps of baked dough, sticking together.

He sighed.

“Love,” he brought out, eyes pinched shut so he didn't have to look at what she'd just done. “Why don't you... Take those to your ship for your... your.. pe... friends. And I make a... another batch for us, huh? And clean up a little.”

She regarded him with a cool smirk.

“Nice try.”

He faced her with a worried frown.

“Please don't make me eat them.”

But she had already grabbed a knife and worked on freeing one of the clumps from the others by hacking away at it like she was handling a mortar.

“Here.”

She held out the poor, tormented thing and he took it with the most tentative movements he'd ever made.

“Do I have to?”

“If you want to make a new batch without my support – yes,” she grinned and he sighed heavily, before taking the universe's smallest bite in history.

He could feel his teeth _waver_.

Another small, desperate bite. Something cracked and he wasn't sure if it was the “biscuit” or his tooth.

“Doctor...”

“You know, maybe I should've stuck a bit more to the recipe,” she said thoughtfully, turning back to the bowl. “I figured my measurements were a bit more precise but now that I think about it, they didn't quite look like this on the pictures.”

The Master, half the biscuit now stuck in his throat in a desperate attempt to eat it without chewing, made a choked sound.

She rushed forwards, padding his back until it dislodged, giggling as he coughed and spit crumbs out over the sink, chin and fingers suddenly covered in the dough she had dropped around it everywhere.

“I don't know,” he asked with a hoarse voice, sweat dripping off his forehead, “why I've not padlocked my kitchen by now.”

“Because you know I'm incredibly skilled at breaking locks?” she offered, smiling slightly as she leaned over to him and licked the dough off his chin. “Plus, this is delicious.”

He leaned into her involuntarily, letting out a long, shuddering sigh as his body began to calm down.

“That's at least something you're skilled at,” he grumbled. “Maybe you'll want to stick to that?”

“Maybe I will. Hey, you've got dough in your hair.”

He raised his hands almost panicky, feeling around his dark strands.

“I do not!”

“You do now,” she giggled and, as if to make really, really sure, pulled him into a kiss, hands in his hair, smearing dough and flour everywhere they went. She tasted of sugar and biscuits and coconut and it was all the Christmas biscuits he needed, really.

But he'd make another batch for her later, just to make sure she'd be content enough not to try again.


	17. Wait are we...?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HellooooOooOo. My laptop broke down, so wow with the up and downs this fic is experiencing.. Here's a mini chapter completely created on my phone. Suffering. Dunno if I'll manage this everyday but I'll try, I guess? It'll take months to get it replaced so... might get quiet.
> 
> Formatting might be off. V.V

He got... the first hints of something being up the next morning, when he woke up to the by now familiar feeling of the Doctor wrapped around him.

She hadn't left to go home now for... what? Three days? Four Days?

"Hello," she greeted him sleepily, a little smile on her lips as she snuggled closer to him upon waking, instead of moving away.

The Master frowned down at her, arms tightening to embrace her nonetheless.

"Doctor..."

Maybe it was the sleepiness. Maybe some part of him still asleep was enough for him to finally be brave enough to do it. Maybe something about repeatedly waking to her still being _there_ gave him actual security. He didn't care.

He just knew he could finally bring himself to say it.

"Doctor, are we... together?"

She giggled into the crook of his neck, kissing it softly.

"Yeah, I'd say. Definitely both here." She poked him in the side as if to prove that he was here, real.

The Master shook his head with his eyes pinched shut. And she had the nerve to call him the emotionally incapable one.

"No, Doctor, I mean... what _is_ this?"

She kneeled up before him, looking down at him with a serious expression now.

"Wait, you're... serious?" she asked, voice quiet. "You're really wondering?"

"Well, yes." He sat up too, weight supported on his elbows to stare at her. "You waltz in here, kidnap me for some stuff you've planned. And I make your biscuits and build snowmen with you, but.."

She leant down to him quickly, warm lips pressing against his, small, firm body pressing him back into the pillows.

"Idiot," she whispers against him and his eyes darken.

"I'm not..."

"Not you," she interrupted him, expression saddening. "Me. I'm an idiot. I should've... I should've known you're an insecure fool."

She kissed him again.

"Fool is just another word for idiot, I'm fairly sure," he threw in. "And I'm not insecure at all!"

"Point is," she replied, both hands cupping his face as she sat down in his lap. "I should've said. Of course we're together. What did you think this was?"

"I don't know." A stream of wild hope flooded the Master, too powerful to tune it out, to bury it, to put it back under so it couldn't break him later on. "Christmas. That's what you said it is. Christmas together, for a month."

"For a month?" she mouthed the words back at him, frowning, deep in thought, then her eyes widened. "Nonono, you utter idiot, you fool, you sweet, sweet..." She kissed him again and again, his throat was dry and his hearts beating out of his chest, and the only thing the Master managed was to hold her, to let her.

"A month of Christmas! Of Christmas! You thought I'd just leave again after, didn't you? Oh, nonono."

Heat. He wasn't sure what it was. Shame, love, lust, it was all an overwhelming mix, completely sweeping him away.

"You're... you're not?"

The Doctor rested her forehead against his, the tip of her nose brushing his and there was warmth and love in her eyes he almost couldn't bear.

"Never."

 _Fuck_.

He turned them around with a sweep, rolling over her, kissing her hard. His whole body was in overload, unsure where to go with the sudden surge of energetic _joy_ it was so unaccustomed to and he simply put it into kissing her, into fucking her, wildly, fast and hard, because he had to, had to move, had to show her, had to make her _understand_.

"I love you!" He wasn't sure if he was thinking or speaking or feeling at her, all he knew was her moaning in his arms, wrapped around him and desperately meeting his thrusts. "I love you, I love you, I love you, never leave me, Doctor, never, never..."

He came when she came or maybe she did when he did, he wasn't sure anymore, not of anything but her in her arms, still there. So there.

She looked a little dazed afterwards, a tiny smile playing around her lips as he held her and when the Master finally got back the ability to think, he found her grinning up at him.

"Biscuits for breakfast?"

"You ate half entire the dough out of the bowl yesterday. What is your stomach, a Black Hole?"

"We've got to celebrate!" she called out, grabbing his hand and dragging him out of the bed. "You've finally realised you're in a relationship!"

The Master couldn't help it. He followed her into the kitchen with a grin, widening with every step behind her.

She'd stay.

She'd _stay_ and she...

... Had she just mocked him?

With a glare, he grabbed one of _her_ biscuits, aimed for her back - a head shot could probably kill her - and _threw_.


	18. Candlelight-Din.... How about a bath?

"You could at least let me try."

"Absolutely not," the Master insisted. "Don't make me tie you up with fairy lights again, because I absolutely will do it."

With pleasure, actually.

The Doctor rolled her eyes and walked towards him, hands pressing his.

"I just want to do something nice for you. I made you suffer through so much without realising, I...-"

"Doctor," he interrupted her quickly. "I know nothing I say or do will ever stop your stubborn thick head, so I _beg_ of you. Don't try to make me dinner. It'll end in a catastrophe. I've not forgotten the horrendous 'ice tea' you made. Or the 'biscuits'."

She didn't like his air quotes one bit, he could see it from the massive sulk she currently showed him, but she'd just have to take it. For the sake of the universe. 

"My ice tea was just fine," she finally uttered. "The fam loved it."

"None of them drank it."

"Graham did!"

"Graham poured it away when you weren't looking."

Stunned, the Doctor stared at him.

"That's it," she called out finally. "He's flying off the team!"

"Oh, you're kicking people out now?" the Master chuckled, trying to cover up his light irritation at the thought of her keeping a _team_.

She said she wouldn't leave him. She'd _said_ that.

"Well, only so much people Team TARDIS can take," she explained with a shrug. "Four was already crowded, five will just get us into trouble. My companions get kidnapped far less often when I... well, had fewer companions."

She was giving him a sheepish grin and he could only hope that she had no idea how fast his hearts were beating.

"Anyway, I'd planned on kicking Yaz, because, you know, you're not supposed to separate twins and I think there's a rule for grandchildren somewhere, too..." She was walking off while babbling and he could hear from her tone that she was kidding, teasing him, but stared after her in confusion nonetheless.

"Hey, where are you going?"

He didn't get a reply, just more distant babbling about Ryan's and Graham's co-dependency. For a second, the Master stood torn between following her or simply guarding the kitchen in case she returned.

The biscuit incident still firmly in mind, he decided for the latter.

When the Doctor returned forty-five minutes later, she was humming a cheerful Christmas tune and her smile was far, far too bright. 

The Master narrowed his eyes.

"I know this face. This is the face you have before ruining a perfectly good plan. What have you done?"

"Improvised," she whistled innocently. "I wanted to do something nice for you and since you act terrified at the thought of me in your kitchen..."

"Absolutely horrified," he confirmed.

"... I had to think of something else. Come on!"

She grabbed him by the hand and the Master stumbled behind her down the aisle she had just come from, knowing there was nowhere he wouldn't follow her to.

She came to a halt before his bathroom door and for a horrifying, blank minute, the Master stared at it, wondering if she had found a way to cook over his bathroom sink.

But she was pushing at the door, excited like a kid presenting their parents a self-drawn picture for their Christmas present and when it shifted open, his breath got caught in his lungs for a moment.

"Do... Doctor."

She had somehow darkened the lights - he'd have to have a talk with his TARDIS, his ship was listening to the Doctor far too well - and so the scene before him was dived into dimmed lights and the glowing red of dozens of candles, all positioned around his big, inviting bathtub.

Which was currently filled almost to the brim with hot, soapy water, rose petals and tons of bubbles.

The strong smell of far too much soap hung in the air and the Master, wordlessly, grinned.

"It's nice, right?" she asked, curiously leaning in to study his face. "You're happy."

"Doctor, for as long as you're with me, I'll be happy."

"But you're double happy now! Triple happy! Quadruple...-"

He caught her wildly gesticulating hands between his and kissed her wrists.

"Of course I am."

"Well, go in then! Shoo Shoo! Before the water gets cold!" She made motion gestures towards the tub and the Master raised an eyebrow.

"You mean you're not planning on coming in with me?"

"I... Huh, that's funny, I guess I wasn't," she mumbled, while he pulled her against him at her braces and started undressing her by letting them fall down. "Silly me," she grinned. "I can give you a backrub far better from inside."

"Sure can," he hummed, enjoying the way she lifted her arms for him, as he pulled her shirt over her head. "And however shall I relax withou you, huh?"

She shivered beneath him as he intentionally let the stubble of his beard brush the bare skin of her collarbone, arms wrapping around her hips from behind.

"Sometimes you say my babbling gives you headaches," she reminded him, dutifully stepping out of the trousers now pooling at her feet.

The Master grinned into the back of her neck.

"I'll just have to make sure you won't babble too much then, don't I?" he joked, reluctantly letting go of her long enough to quickly slip out of his clothes.

They climbed into the tub carefully, trying their best not to throw any candles down and she sank into the water with her back against his chest, eyes fluttering shut with a low sigh of relief.

That bloody fool never relaxed. Never gave herself a minute of just rest, too scared of what was lurking in her mind, finding her the second her thoughts stopped racing.

Wet fingers ran over her back, her shoulders, down to her breasts to gently cup them and his lips traced after them, kissing her sloppily where he could reach.

"You're beautiful, have I ever told you that? This body of yours?"

"Oh, is it?" she turned her head, beaming at him. "I can never tell. I thought I'd gotten quite good at it when it was just male bodies. Got very clear signals. Big ears - bad. Big nose - bad. Big cock - Good."

The Master, having grabbed a sponge to gently start washing her back, snorted into her shoulder.

"Makes no sense, I know!" she called out. "I find it ridiculous, too. What's wrong with a big nose, huh? Anyway. I can't quite pick up any signals since I'm female. All men just... have that same look."

She shuddered.

"Honey?" he asked, smiling softly at her as she turned her head again.

"Yeah?"

"You're babbling."

"Whoops, sorry!" She wasn't sorry though -she was still giggling when he gently massaged shampoo into her hair, despite her eyes falling shut.

"Feels nice."

"For the record," the Master said into her ear, voice low, "you're always beautiful. Big nose, cock or no cock." He grinned. "And I love you babbling until my head hurts. Makes you you."

He waited until she'd smiled at him, then said,

"Okay, dive into the water to wash the shampoo out, love."

She pinched her nostrils shut like a little kid as she went under, eyelids pressed together and a tortured expression on her face, until she came back for air, hair soaked and silky and shampoo-free.

"There's still some left," he lied swiftly. "One more time."

It took her five dives to come back up glaring at him and the Master was confident she only figured it out because his innocent grin had turned into untamed laughter.

"Told you I'd find a way to shut you up," he said and she scrunched up her face.

"That was not quite what I head in mind."

He let his hands roam between her thighs with a kiss to her neck.

"I'll make it up to you."


	19. So about that candlelight dinner...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, typing on my phone is beginning to drive me insane but replacement is hopefully on its waaaay! Until then I'm gonna have to keep stuff short.

"So, what does the recipe say?"

The Doctor looked down at his handwriting with a look of very obvious dismay.

"One little spoon of sugar," she muttered.

The Master raised an eyebrow at her.

"And how much did you pour in?"

She rolled her eyes - Showing absolutely no regrets.

"I'm not sure. Maybe two or three too many?"

He held the half emptied package up with his lips pinched together.

"Bit more than that, love."

"So what!" she called out, sounding more offended than three months ago, when he'd blown Mars up a little. "Sugar's good! Sugar doesn't ruin anything!"

He picked up the (un-used) spoon he'd given her to measure the sugar with, dunked it into the sauce and offered it to her. Without hesitation, the Doctor opened her mouth and let him feed her the sauce.

He could see several expressions wash over her face as the sweet horror touched her tongue until she settled on a tortured, yet determined smile.

"Tastes great," she brought out and the Master gave her a cheeky grin.

"Yeah? Great, then I'll make myself proper sauce and you eat Christmas dinner with yours, how's that?"

The last remnants of her very unconvincing smile froze on the Doctor's face.

"Show.. show me again?" she asked and the Master sighed.

"It's been three times, Doctor. It's not that difficult. You just refuse to follow any kind of instructions."

"Instructions are boring!" she replied with a sulk. "I'm a genius, I can figure this out myself!"

The Master let out a soft snort.

"Apparently not."

"Yeah, well..." she stammered. "You... you... you're bad at.. at..."

He waited, a grin tugging at his lips, while he watched her struggling to come up with anything.

"You're bad at... Oh, screw you!" She laughed as she saw his smug grin, pushing him lightly and only causing the Master's grin to widen.

He stepped behind her, gently wrapping his arms around her waist, chin resting on her shoulder.

"I'm pretty bad at ice skating," he reminded her.

"Yeah you are," she grinned.

"So, how about we declare me a lost ice skating cause and you a lost cooking cause. I make Christmas dinner for both of us...-"

"And the fam!" she threw in.

"And the... Wait, what?"

He let go of her immediately, stepping back with a betrayed expression on his face.

"I thought Christmas was _ours_."

"I thought we might have two," she offered sheepishly. "Because we're gonna have to tell them. Eventually. And food might give you some extra points with them. Well, with Graham, at least."

"You... want to tell them?"

This was a bad idea. They hated him. They hated him for _good reason_. He'd tried to murder them. Had tried to murder _her_. Had almost detroyed their planet. Had definitely destroyed _hers_. They'd just remind her of all the ways he didn't deserve her. They'd... they'd...

"Hey..." She wrapped her arms around him, beautiful hazel eyes gently carrying him out of the panic, holding his. "It's alright. We can have dinner with them whenever you feel ready. Time machine perks." She gave a playful wink. "They'll understand. And if they don't, well, they'll have to stay home, then. You come first."

Since when?

Her lips brushed his and he wasn't sure whether she'd read his thoughts or just seen it on his face, but she answered him either way.

"Since now. And forever."


	20. Fairy Lights

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello! A very kind friend sent me her old laptop to write on until I've got my money together for a new one, so here I am, late evening, trying to catch up and upload chapterssss. I'm sorry I had to skip yesterday's chapter, I could've typed something short together on my phone, but I genuinely didn't want to put less effort into the storytelling than was planned and typing on phone... kinda leads to that, for me (because I hate it! :D)
> 
> Anyway, I still have exchange fics to get to for Christmas and all that stuff, so I'm still a bit stressed. But I appreciated the comments and support and am hopefully back on track again soonish!
> 
> Until then, here's some light fairy lights bondage smut, because I was having A Mood.

The Master had been itching to do this ever since he'd first got his hands onto the fairy lights.

There was a wide grin on his face as he looked down at her now. Having the Doctor naked beneath him was still something he very much cherished. All of this trust, the familiarity between them, the soft, seemingly casual touches, they still sent his hearts racing and his mind spiralling in joy.

This, however, this was something else – A whole other level.

She looked beautiful. She always did, but there was just something about her, lying on the bed, several cords of fairy lights wrapped around her pale skin, illuminating it in several, contrasting colours.

He'd kept her breasts free, they were jumping out between the cords around her hips and her shoulders. Climbing on top of her, the Master couldn't resist to lean down and kiss them gently, his teeth grazing her hardened nipples and she moaned beneath him, shivering slightly.

He'd been more generous with the cords around her wrists, tied her to the headboard tightly, unable to move – Well, for as long as she was generous enough to play along.

The Master's eyes wandered upwards, taking in her face. She'd thrown her head back, eyes closed but he could see them twitching underneath her eyelids, could see her mouth fallen half-open already.

His Doctor had always enjoyed a good tie-up.

With a grin, he climbed upwards, pulling her into a kiss and she opened her eyes into his, showing him her dazed expression. He gently bit her lower lip, sucked it in between his, a smile constantly tugging at the corners of his mouth.

She felt warm and open against him, her breath still tasted of the cinnamon she'd poured over her cornflakes this morning and he, quite literally, couldn't get enough of her. His head was spinning when he finally pulled back, just a little, to transfix her eyes with his.

“You look gorgeous like this,” he brought and she smiled.

“See, I _knew_ you'd like Christmas decoration. Just needed the right incentive.”

The Master grinned.

“Right you are.”

He wandered back down, hands finding her breaths all by herself, squeezing them cheerfully, before running down her sides. The tips of his fingers brushed the skin underneath the chords, where first, red imprints were gently building on her skin and he could see goosebumps appearing on her skin.

Steadily, his hands wandered down further and further. The last chord he'd strung around her was wrapped around one of her thighs and he gently placed a kiss there, right between her skin meeting the chord, biting down gently just to hear her moan.

When he attempted to climb back up, she kicked out, the back of her foot hitting him on his leg and the Master grinned.

“Poor, helpless Doctor,” he murmured, lips close to her ear and his voice low in pleasure. “Can't do anything, now can you?”

She could still glare at him, that much was true.

“Anything you want, love?” he purred.

“You. Getting on with it?”

“What was that?” the Master giggled. “Me? Ah well, you know what they say. You ask, you shall receive.”

It was all a big game, of course. He sat on her chest, felt her breath coming heavier as her chest rose and sank beneath him, his erect cock brushing her cheek, leaving a trail of pre-cum in its wake, before he laid it on her lips, a little moan slipping from him at the first feeling of her wet mouth at his tip.

He adored her and she knew it. She'd just have to say the word – quite literally, one word – and he'd roll off her, hold her, unwrap her, give her the orgasms of a life time if she felt like it, but this, this was something else, this was his hearts speeding up in ecstasy at the thought of getting actual control over her, to have just how he'd always wanted her, but more. So much more. Because right now, she really _was_ his. ~~And he was hers, oh, he was going to be forever.~~

She didn't say the word, however – Instead, she opened her mouth in silent obedience and let him slip inside. He moaned loudly. She was hot and tight around him and he felt her lips at the base of his cock, sucking gently before she let her head fall backwards a little, letting him slip through her lips, before taking him back in.

Perfect, it was perfect. He was gently thrusting in and out of her, feeling himself get closer, sweat pooling on his forehead and he wanted it to never stop, but he knew it soon would, so he pulled back with the sound of a wet “plop” and she looked up at him, dazedly and desperate and questioning.

He kissed her gently, tasting himself on her lips, feeling a moan vibrate in her throat against him and he quickly slid down her body, thumb finding her clit as he reached down between her legs. She twitched beneath him, rising up against the chords of lights holding her down. He saw the colours reflecting at the ceiling, swaying gently and for a moment, the Master felt himself stop breathing.

Literally. Breathtaking.

“Shhh,” he murmured. “It's okay. Come for me.”

She did. He felt her wet on his fingers, felt her clench around nothing, fingers still massaging her clit even as her breathing evened slightly in relief.

“Well done, love.” He was nibbling at her breasts, sure to leave light bite marks. He was lying on top of her now, his cock rubbing against the sweaty skin of her thighs, the chord boring into his sensitive area but he didn't care. His grinding grew more and more desperate but for a moment, he just let it go on, eyes closed and it felt so _good_.

Then she whimpered beneath him, hips rising desperately towards him and he grinned, kissing the side of her neck before climbing down her body slightly, lining himself up.

“Ready, love?” he asked and he hadn't even meant to ease her, even though there were beads of sweat on her forehead and another impatient whimper left her pleading lips as she wriggled against him.

He slipped in easily – Gods, she was so wet. For a second, the Master held himself still inside her, eyes fluttering shut and he could do nothing but enjoy the feeling of her all around him. He'd never get used to this, never, not in a million years, just the feeling of it being right, of them both together, without any of the usual rage.

“Please,” she whispered, hoarsely, and he remembered that he had to move, shaking his head as if to escape a trance, before he started thrusting.

“Everything you want, love.” Which wasn't quite the game they were playing (yet), but he couldn't particularly care anymore. She could free herself from the fairy lights and wrap it around him like a lasso, completely tie him down and to her bed and never let him leave again and he'd be fine with it, not even concerned, because it was them, together, and it was all that mattered, really.

“Harder?” she tried, voice low and he laughed. She sounded so genuinely afraid that he was going to tease her, that he was going to use her need against her and under other circumstance, maybe he would've, but right now he needed her too much, himself. And so he complied, thrusts getting harder, faster, as he chased for his own pleasure as much as she was – He stole a kiss from her lips, soaked in the moans spilling from them, giving her his own and at some point, he wasn't sure who came first, if it even mattered – he fell down on top of her, feeling his cum leaking out of her, running down her legs and his and for a while, they just laid still, both panting and then the stupid, beautiful, wonderful fairy lights were poking into his skin and the Master rolled off her with a little chuckle.

“That was... pretty great,” she brought out and he only chuckled even more, as he struggled to his knees, sitting up to start freeing her from her restraints.

“We can never hang those up, now,” he grinned as he had her wrists free. “I think we've just conditioned me to get hard whenever I look at them.”


	21. Gingerbread Man

The Master could feel his concentration fading. Maybe he'd been sitting here longer than he'd initially expected, but that was alright. He liked this. This was fun.

The gingerbread was tasty and every once in a while, he'd sneak a bite of the pieces he didn't need to put together a little hut that looked remarkably like his TARDIS.

He was just carefully, cautiously, adding snow made from icing on the little window sills, when the door opened behind him and he heard the Doctor step in.

“Here you are,” she said, frown audible in her voice. “I've been looking for you all morning, why have you shut yourself into this little room?”

“Busy,” he mumbled, eyes still focused on the gingerbread house but his fingers were trembling slightly now and the sugar icing dripped down the side of his hut instead.

“Noooo!” he called out, jumping up. “Oh come on!”

With a swift move, the Doctor's hand reached out, collected the dripping frosting on her finger and stuffed it into her mouth with a content smile.

“Taste's goo, your TARDIS. Bit like...” Her frown deepened. “Master is that...”

He had returned to stress-eating, stuffing another piece of the leftover gingerbread into his mouth with a sulk.

“I've been working on it half the night! I couldn't sleep and then I didn't want to sleep because I was putting smarties on the roof. Look!”

He showed it to her proudly, barely noticing that he was _swaying_ as he ran around the hut, pointing at the roof.

“Yes,” the Doctor replied patiently. “I can see that. Master how much did you...”

“I even put some mentos into the chimney,” he laughed, his cackle slipping into slightly manic tones. “As a surprise for when you make a fire. That'll be funny.”

“You know that...” She cleared her throat hesitantly. “That there's not a real fireplace, right?”

With a wide-eyed grin, he tore open the gingerbread door he'd built in and revealed a fully replicated version of his TARDIS, with furniture and everything, including two little versions of themselves, dancing together.

“You... Is that Marzipan?”

“I hate your head three times,” he announced, somehow feeling a wave of pride running through him. “Delicicious. No. Deli... Del... How do you say that?”

“Oh stars,” she sighed. “This is going to be fun. Master. How much of the gingerbread did you eat?”

“Why?” he asked. “I don't know. Al that was left?”

He raised his hand a bit too fast and the door tore off the wall. For a second, the Master eyed it in confusion, holding it up in front of his face, then he shrugged and bit into it.

“No,” the Doctor laughed, trying to stop him and readily, the Master held out his own hand.

“You want a bite?”

“Master, you know they call it gingerbread because there's ginger in it... right?”

“Ginger?” he asked, giggling. “No, why would they put ginger into that. Then the kids can't eat it!”

“Yes they can, human kids don't get drunk on ginger.”

“They don't?” he asked, frowning. “That's boring.”

“Nah, it's a Gallifreyan thing,” she sighed, gently taking the gingerbread out of his hand. “I think we should get you a nice warm shower, what do you think?”

But the Master was still thinking, forehead in furrows as he looked at her.

“Do you get drunk on ginger?”

“Yeah, of course,” she replied with a shrug. “Not today, though. Today, we take you to the bathroom and...-”

“You're not Gallifreyan though, why do you get drunk on ginger.”

“I... excuse me?” She stared at him in shock for a moment and the Master, giggling, pointed his finger at her.

“I mean, you are Gallifreyan but you're not genetically Gallifreyan! So you're like, fake Gallifreyan.” He frowned again. “You got all the annoying parts of being Gallifreyan – The growing up on Gallifrey parts.”

“Well, it made me grow up with you,” she replied with a gentle smirk. “Which I think wasn't that bad.”

“No!” He was giggling like a little child now. “That was nice.” A grin grew on his face, eyes pinning to hers. “Eat the ginger.”

“Why would I do that?” she sighed again. “I don't feel like getting drunk early in the morning.”

“Because I...” he poked into her chest. “... don't believe you.”

“Don't believe me what?”

“I don't believe you that you get drunk on ginger!” He stemmed a hand into her hip and after a second of silent glares, the Doctor did the same.

“Want me to prove it?”

“Yes!” The Master's stand was gently swaying, but he ignored it, his eyes still transfixed to the Doctor's in a silent challenge.

Without taking her eyes off him even for a second, the Doctor stuffed the entire rest of the gingerbread door into her mouth.

“There you have it. Happy now?”

“More!” he clapped, excited grin spreading as he whirled around and tore the smarties-covered roof off the house. “More!”

They ate themselves through his hut. It's what they were built for in the end, he supposed and he'd always enjoyed tearing things down far more than building them up, anyway. Piece for piece of his decoration, he fed the Doctor and used her lack of attention to sneak some more bites too, between her disapproving glances.

Quickly, however, these turned into laughter, too. Together, they sat at the now empty table, forehead against forehead, having a staring contest that both were determined to win, not noticing that they had blinked already several times.

“I'm Gallifreyan!” the Doctor brought out with slurred words. “It's proof!”

“You're the Doctor,” he replied, voice just as slurred. “Course you're Gallifreyan.”

“I'm a Time Lord!”

“Absolutely,” he purred back.

“I'm....” she frowned. “What was my gender again?”

“I don't remember,” he dismissed her with a wave. “Gingerbread man?”

She looked thoughtful, for a moment.

“Is that a gender they have?”

He nodded and pulled out the package where all the gingerbread had been in. “Here, it says so on the tin. Contains gingerbread men to paint and decorate yourself!”

“Oh. Maybe I am a gingerbread man, then.”

They stared at the package in awe for a moment, both completely taken in.

“Does that mean I'm edible?”

“Yes,” the Master replied, completely convinced. “And tasty. Yum.” He bit into her nose, gently, just to underline his point and she giggled.

“But what are you!”

“The eater of gingerbread”

“That is not a gender!” she called out.

“Yes, it is!” the Master announced proudly, pointing at the package again. “Here it is. It says the potential eater of the gingerbread needs to make sure not to swallow any harmful... thingies and use edible... stuff.”

The Doctor stared at it for a moment.

“You wrote that!” she called out. “That's not real.”

“It's real. I get to eat you.”

“No no no, that doesn't make sense.”

“It's right there. I just need to be careful not to eat harmful... well, you know.”

“Huh,” she looked down at herself. “Do you think I'm edible?”

“You're gingerbread man,” he gave back, getting up from the table and around her to pull off her coat. “Coat's harmful, though. And braces. And the trousers. Maybe the shirt.”

The Doctor felt that there was something faintly familiar and comforting about being eaten, that day, as the table was rocking beneath her from his thrusts.

They'd wake up with a headache tomorrow, of course, but as far as she was concerned, it had been totally worth it.


	22. The inevitable hangover

They woke up curled up in each other, on the floor right next to the table, with their heads aching and a queasy feeling of nausea settling in their stomachs.

“This is all your fault,” he heard the Doctor mumble sleepily against the bare skin of his chest.

“Shut your damn mind,” he whined back.

“You mean mouth.” She was rubbing her forehead, strands of hair sticking to her forehead where... oh, would you look at that. Bits of smarties, hair and mhm, yes, his semen, were sticking to an ugly mess on her skin.

“No, I meant mind,” he brought out, mouth drawing to a half-grin. “I can feel your headache bouncing around in my headache.”

“Whoops, sorry.”

They separated (their minds) enough to clear their heads with a few breaths. The Doctor rubbed her forehead again, frowning and then quickly let her fingers sink.

“Shower?”

“Shower,” he nodded.

They laid still. Now that only his own headache was tormenting the Master, he could feel his poor back and limbs hurt from the night on the floor. At some point, they must've fallen off the table, too. He was pretty sure they had been lying on the table at some point.

“Your fault,” she repeated again.

“You didn't have to eat them,” he reminded her, smirking. “But you just couldn't let it go, could you.”

“We really should shower, she replied, ignoring him with a grumpy expression and the Master nodded again, hands running gently over her sides.

“Definitely.”

They kept on lying, unmoving, except for their breathing and the Master's hand gently stroking down the side of her (quite sticky) body.

“So pretty,” he muttered. “So covered in me.”

“Bit gross, though,” she pointed out and he huffed.

“A bit.”

With a unhappy groan from her side, he gently nudged her off him so he could get up. Instead of getting up along with him, the Doctor stayed lying on the ground, face pressed onto the floor, making sounds of discontent.

“Come on, love,” he grinned, grabbing her under the arm pits and pulling her upright. “You'll feel better after a nice, hot shower.”

“I think I will never feel good again,” she replied, lips pressed together and the Master laughed.

“Look at it from the bright side – You definitely proved you're Gallifreyan. Why you even cared, I don't know.”

“They might've loomed me a nice Gallifreyan body for whenever I re-started,” she sighed. “So I'm no different from you, at all, really. Right?”

“Of course you're not.” He kissed her temple as he held her steady, walking towards their bathroom – huh. Theirs. When had he started thinking of his rooms as theirs? He'd been a bit blind, hadn't he? As she was stiffly stumbling next to him, with nothing plaguing her but a headache and regrets, he couldn't help but realise that yet, they were no different from each other and no different from the people they used to be all those years ago, when things had been simpler.

Just two idiots, in love.

“You're the only one I've ever met who's even remotely like me,” he concluded and when she gave him a sharp look, froze a little.

“What?”

“Nothing.” She smiled. “Come on. Shower. I feel sticky.”

When she walked on, he saw that he had... hm... left an interesting pattern on her back. He grinned.

“I don't know, I quite like it.”  
  


He spent half the shower rubbing her clean with a sponge and a ton of soap and she was leaning against him, eyes closed and trying her best to relax, despite the roaring of the water trickling down on her leaving an aching echo in both their heads.

“My God, how many times did you come on me last night?”

“I genuinely don't remember,” he chuckled, as he wiped away the last remnants of their night from her lower back. “But it seems like we had fun.”

“It'll probably come back to us,” she sighed. “It usually does.”

“Might take a few days, though.” He yawned, forehead resting against her temple and his eyes fluttered shut. The warm water was so nice on his skin and she felt wonderful against him and he'd just... stand and relax... just for a little while.

The Doctor pulled away, holding him slightly when he didn't straighten immediately. “Hey, sleepyhead, not here. Let's at least locate into a bed for that? You know? A comfortable, warm, _quiet_ bed?”

The Master had to – begrudgingly – agree and so they stumbled out of the shower together, drying each other up and then quickly headed for his bedroom. Right now, just disappearing underneath the covers with the Doctor and only re-emerging when the headache and the horrendous nausea had passed, seemed like the best thing in the world to him.

“Never again,” he swore himself, as he curled his body all around her, her presence an odd comfort for his poor, strained body.

“You say that every time,” she reminded him. “Do you remember when we were on Trunkta and you had that weird victory banquet because you thought you'd murder me the next day and you drank almost all the ginger tea yourself?”

“I didn't know it was ginger!” he murmured.

“That seems to be a theme. It was good for me, though. Made escaping much easier.”

The Master grinned.

“If you want to call it escape. Far as I remember, you let me tie you up with your own scarf and take you on _that_ table.”

They giggled together happily at the shared memory roaming around somewhere in their minds.

“Yeah. I guess we haven't really changed much, have we?”

“Guess not,” he replied, feeling a weird surge of warmth overcoming him. “And why would we. We're pretty great.”

“Yeah, we're not so bad.” The Doctor yawned, snuggling up a bit deeper into his arms. “I can't believe we're spending the day before Christmas with a hangover, though.”

“Eh, it's alright,” he shrugged. “We'll have a lot days before Christmas more to get it right.”

She could only smile at that.


	23. Christmas Eve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goood morning & Happy holidays! I'm a bit early because I'm leaving in a bit to legally hug my mum. I hope you'll have a great time despite the circumstances. Somehow.
> 
> So, normally this fic would end here, it's the 24th after all, but since I had to skip one chapter thanks to my laptop breaking down, there's gonna be a bonus chapter featuring the fam and that promised "coming out", if you will, tomorrow. I hope. (I haven't written it yet. :'D)

“Okay, so...” He felt ridiculously nervous, his hands sweating and his shirt already halfway buttoned open, so he got some air. “It's all prepared.”

The Doctor was sitting on his sofa, a book in her lap and a hideous red, rainbow striped Christmas jumper on. She'd even found back her old Christmas hat and let the tip fall down her blond hair.

It looked... alright, it looked a little bit cute.

“What did you even do?” she asked, a little laugh spilling from her lips as she got off the sofa, ready to face his kitchen. “Feeding a whole school class?”

“No, something much worse and ravenous than that.” He kissed her lips with an excited grin.

“You're gonna say 'you', aren't you?”

“You,” The Master stated, smiling innocently, then he bowed down ever so slightly, hand pointing at the kitchen door behind him. “My dear Doctor, if you would enter, now, please?”

She did, a lightly confused look on her face and he stood for a second, biting his lower lip to hold back a little laugh, until he heard her gasp.

Whirling around, the Master laid both hands on her shoulder, guiding her inside, excitement racing away in his chest.

“Thought I'd make it a bit special,” he muttered.

A bit special was an understatement. He was the Master. He didn't do things _half_. The room was darkened romantically, illuminated by nothing but countless fairy light chains hung across the entire ceiling and the windows, candles and the snow gently reflecting the moon light from outside.

The whole table was filled with basically every common, traditional human Christmas food he had heard of on beautiful silver plates, along with Gallifreyan wine, crystal glasses and – Well, he knew her, so he'd added a lot of desserts.

There were twigs of red Gallifreyan trees in the corners of the room, peaking out of vases and laid out on surfaces, beautifully decorated with all kinds of Christmas ornaments – Including her stupid plush Dalek.

The Doctor looked around the room with wide eyes, taking it all in.

“That's beautiful.”

“It's...” He shook his head with a little smile, words getting lost on the way, so he searched for new ones, better ones. “Doctor, I just want to make you happy. I spent so much time trying the exact opposite and I know it's... it might be hard to trust this, but...”

She had wrapped her arms around him faster than he could blink, kissing him so hard, he was stumbling backwards, raising his own hands to find hold on the wall behind him. She barely cared, still kissing him, lips hungrily pressing against his and the Master let himself be swept away, breathlessly happy.

“I trust you,” she uttered after a while, breath still on his lips, eyes boring into his. “I always, always stupidly trust you, again and again.”

“I won't let you down, then,” he whispered back. “Not this time.”

“Good.” She gave him one more, chaste, kiss to the lips, then took a step back and the Master was suddenly very aware of his half-slumped against the wall state and straightened himself with a little cough.

“Right. Okay.” He quickly pulled back her chair and she sat down with a little smile, before he sat down himself.

“Anything you wan...”

She had gone straight for the chocolate pie standing closest to her, not even bothering to cut off a piece, but instead putting in a fork to take a huge bite out of it.

“Okay,” he snorted. “I'm not sure why I'm surprised.”

“Neither am I,” she brought with a full mouth and for a second, the Master just stared at her. He'd spent the entire evening preparing all sorts of meals and specialities and... oh, well, who cared.

He grabbed the vanilla creme and added it to her plate. “Goes great together,” he explained, before he broke off a piece of the _entire cake on her fork_ with his fingers and stuffed it into his mouth.

“You _are_ the perfect man,” she smiled and his hearts beat a bit faster. Just a tiny, little bit. It was if they had gotten used to it, by now, to just forever run in slightly raised speed when the Doctor was around.

And the Doctor would be around... ~~forever~~ a lot.  
  
They ate until their stomachs threatened to burst. And a little more. She'd gone from chocolate pie to cinnamon rolls to ice cream to Turkey and potatoes and he couldn't help but admire the capacities of food consumption she was able to. She'd wake up tomorrow with nothing but a slight appetite for leftovers, while he was probably going to feel sick all day.

Then they grabbed themselves some blankets and curled up in front of the windows together, looking out to watch the steady fall of snow.

“I _am_ happy, you know?” she asked, after a little while of peaceful silence. “This entire month. I've been so happy. I don't even remember the last time I've...” She shook her head, breaking off.

“I've not made it easy for you, huh?” His voice sounded more bitter than he had intended.

“Eh. The universe hasn't. It's not just you. I haven't even made it easy for myself. But when I... when I came in here, that first day, I was so scared you'd just throw me out or threaten me or do any of that... that stuff you always do. I was so nervous, you know? But I just needed to be around you. In that way we used to.”

He didn't reply, just rubbed his hands over her shoulders in soothing circles.

“And then... It was so easy. From there. We had fun. And I didn't even realise...” There were tears gleaming in her eyes. “I didn't realise how much we've failed each other, how often we should've just done... that and instead done nothing but harm.”

He kissed her temple gently.

“We were trapped in a circle and you broke us out.”

“I couldn't have done it without you being so ready for it, though. Maybe we needed all that time apart to... to even realise what we want. I don't know. It's all a mess.”

“Well, we're here now,” he smiled. “And we know what to do next mess.”

She laughed.

“Don't say that. I don't want to go out there alone again.”

“You won't have to,” he promised and he meant it. No way was he going to let her go again. The first time had always killed them both, had actually killed them countless times. Absolutely no way. “Hey, that reminds me. I've got something for you.”

“You do?”

“Back in a sec.”

He kissed her again, then quickly climbed to his feet, leaving the kitchen to run into his bedroom, where he'd hidden her gift underneath her bed.

With quick steps, he ran back into the kitchen, where she was looking up at him with a questioning frown.

“It was a bit hard, getting this done with you taking up all of my days,” he grinned. “But I managed.”

“Oh.” Her eyes were gleaming as she took the little velvety box he was offering her. “I do love surprises.”

She opened it with the excitement of a child written all over her face. He could see it all as if reading an open book. The initial shock at the sight of the little golden ear cuff, the joy, the curious gaze as she held it up in the air to get a better view in light of the fairy lights, tongue sucked in between her teeth.

The gaze of a scientist, studying something she knew was special.  
  
“Oh, it's beautiful,” she breathed. He'd hoped so. there were delicate stars dangling down on tiny chains, looking like a wake of stardust left behind. He'd gotten the idea one night, when he'd studied her ear cuff and sat on it for quite some while – He loved working on artistic little detailed things, he loved working on something with his entire concentration. And it was so much better than a bloody plush Dalek from a market.

“What metal is this?” she asked. “I thought it was gold, but...”

“It's my TARDIS key,” he grinned.   
  
His Doctor. Always asking the right questions.

“Your TARDIS key?” she asked, eyebrows raised.

“Well, one of them,” he explained. “Melted and cut and reformed.”

“Some people just give out their keys like a normal person, you know?” she asked, but she was beaming.

“Yeah well, I would've,” he sighed. “But it's not like you need it. She's already letting you in and out without me getting a say in it.”

“Damn right she is.” She kissed him happily. “Put it on?”

He nodded and after a bit of fiddling, there was now a constellation dangling down her ear, one he'd created for her himself, one he was never going to destroy – The one thing he'd always wanted to give to her, but she had never wanted to accept, miniaturised, harmless, beautiful.

“Suits you.”

“I love it. I really do.”

“I hoped you would.” He grinned, feeling a bubble of pride swelling between his hearts. “It was a lot of hard work.”

“I've got... something for you too, but it seems a bit silly, now, in comparison.”

“I'm sure it's great, it's from you, after all,” he laughed. “Come on, show me.”

“I... oh well, okay.”

She buried her hand in one of her endlessly big pockets and pulled out a little, clumsily wrapped gift.

Eagerly, the Master grabbed it. It felt light and soft in his hands.

Excitement making his hands tremble slightly, he tore open the paper in careless manner and...

“That's... Lovely,” he said, tone flat. “That's... so... You.”

In his hand stood a little plush Cyberman.

“You seemed to really like them. I think your last five plans or so involved Cybermen, so I thought...”

“I fucking hate you, Doctor.”

She giggled, kissing his cheek gently.

“It's filled with Artron links. To the brim. All the storages my TARDIS had left.”

His hearts were racing out of his chest as he looked up at her.

“You want to link our TARDISes?”

“I mean, it's practical. I doubt we'll want to leave them behind. That way one can always tag along and they always find each other if something should happen or we get separated. I mean. You always find me anyway and I'm pretty sure you have cameras all over my ship, but...”

He kissed her, long and hard, pressed her against the window and kissed her some more. Something inside of him felt weirdly healed. She'd once said he was scared of everything, it wasn't even long, but right now, he felt utterly, utterly fearless. She'd just given him the one thing that could make him feel secure in this vast universe.

“Glad you're happy about it,” she grinned. “We can work on it right after Christmas, yeah?”

He nodded.

“On an entirely unrelated note, I do have a question.”

“What is it, love?”

She raised a finger to point at the colourful shimmering ceiling above their heads.

“Didn't you say you couldn't look at those anymore without getting hard?”

The Master merely grinned evilly.

“And what about it, love?”


	24. A family dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't care what you say, as long as it's December, it's still Christmas. :P A little bit.  
> That being said, I'm in a depression slump, so this took me a while and I'm not 100% happy with it either, but hey, I'm feeling like finally putting this story to rest. It had some ups & downs, but thanks to everyone who stuck around and read and liked and commented through it all, you guys are the absolute best and kept me incredibly motivated. <3

“Really, Doc,” Graham sighed. “I'm not sure about this.”

They were all staring down at their salads, forks half-heartedly in their hands, but none moved them to actually eat anything.

Well, the Master did. He was ignoring each and everyone of them, simply enjoying his salad while they talked. She had wanted to do this. He was doing it. That didn't mean he had to support her impossible quest to make them _understand_.

The Doctor quickly grabbed her own fork, stuffing some of the lettuce into her mouth clumsily.

“No, honestly,” she said with her mouth full, smiling sheepishly. “He's trying. That's worth something, right?”

From the doubting, carefully guarded looks on her friend's faces, he'd have to assume – No.

The Doctor sighed.

The Master kept on eating.

“Listen, I know salad is not great, but he won't bring the main course if you're not eating. And it's a great main course. And don't even get me started on the deserts he does!”

The Master smiled grimly between bites.

“Doctor,” Ryan replied, frowning slightly. “The food's not the problem.”

“Then what is?” She asked, chewing lazily on her salad.

Technically, he'd made that salad rule only for her. She never ate her greens, that one, unless you bribed her. And she did like a good, well-cooked duck, his Doctor.

“We think it might be poisoned,” Yaz explained in a soft tone, eyes flinching to the Master and back.

The Master was dabbing his mouth with a napkin.

“Poisoned?” The Doctor looked from her to Graham to Ryan, laughing at first, but then the sound got stuck in her throat as she saw the seriousness on their faces. “Oh. No. No, it's not poisoned. See?”

Demonstratively, she picked up one of the cocktail tomatoes from Yaz' plate and chewed it cheerfully.

She quickly ducked away as juices splashed through the room and the Master, not fast enough, continued to dab his forehead next.

“Whoops. Sorry.”

He gave her a murderous glare, but said nothing.

“Well, it's just... He's not exactly trustworthy, is he?” Ryan threw into the room.

The Master could've played the game of the petty host for the entire day, could've just enjoyed his own, by the way delicious, food in peace and let them all sort this out with each other, if it wasn't for the absolutely crestfallen way the Doctor now regarded Ryan, mouth hanging half open as if she was trying to say something, then just closing in resignation.

Gods, he hated seeing her sad. It wasn't fair of the universe to throw her in his way all the time, with her hazel puppy eyes, the way her perfect lips formed into a sulk, the way her shoulders sinking made his hearts clench in pain and worry.

And so the Master spoke.

“It's not poisoned. I'm not trying to murder any of you – I'm not trying to be your friend either, I realise you won't ever like me. It's about getting along well enough to not drive the Doctor into chronic unhappiness.”

It's about not having to leave her again, he thought, but he felt his lips stiffen at that, simply couldn't manage to say it. No matter what she'd said to him, he knew her better than anyone, he knew she'd eventually need more than just him.

He was the one who needed nothing but her but she, she always needed a whole universe. Needed the beauty, the adventure, the people to revolve around her like she was the centre of the universe, no matter how much she claimed it wasn't true, it was her air to breathe and everything else would eventually suffocate her.

He didn't want her to suffocate.

“That's it, I'm calling Jack.”

“Jack?” The Doctor and the Master said at the same time, both heads turning towards Graham in shock, as he pulled out his phone and shoved the plate away to type.

“Yeah,” Graham explained. “He gave me his number. Said something about if I ever needed someone to remind the Doctor to not date the manic psycho murder, I should just call, he'd have experience in the matter.

The Master snorted.

“Experience?” the Doctor called out shrilly. “He asked me over chips if he's my long lost brother, that's all.”

“He what?” The Master broke out into laughter now. “Your what? Excuse me, I will kick his ass into the nearest supernova if he calls me your brother again.”

“You will do no such thing!” She whirled around, pointing at him accusatory. “You promised you'd not threaten anyone's death tonight!”

He raised both hands in surrender.

“Sorry, sorry, it's an instinct.”

She turned back around to Graham.

“Don't call Jack, please. He's gone through a lot with the Master. You all have. I understand that. But I'm telling you it's... it's more complicated than that.”

“How so?” Yaz asked.

She was quieter than the other two, almost calm. The Master watched her with fascination and for a second there, her eyes found his, meeting his gaze with cool determination.

Huh.

“He's my oldest friend,” the Doctor replied.

“You already said that, Doctor,” Ryan threw in. “But he's clearly not that person anymore, so...”

“No but...”

“I liked him,” Yaz said quietly. “O. I liked him. I really thought he was alright. And then he went and did... that.”

The Master leaned back in his chair for a second, breathing, bracing himself.

“O was designed to be liked,” he explained, voice unusual gentle. “I let him be all the parts I felt I couldn't be as myself. That doesn't mean he wasn't part of me. He was. She knows this...” He gave the Doctor his softest smile. “Because she knows me. Longer than anyone else in this universe, better than anyone ever bothered to know me. She can look through dozens of masks upon masks and see the real me. Right now, I can't offer you any apologies, because I realise they're not enough. I'm not a changed man, either. I'm me, held together by her. But I can promise you that she loves you – And right now, that's enough for me to never, ever try to hurt you again.”

A stunned silence spread at the table, including even the Doctor.

Graham was the first who found his voice back, clearing his throat once, before turning to the Doctor.

“So you... love him, huh?”

“I...” the Doctor, to her credit, only hesitated for a single second. “I do.”

“Aw, crap,” Ryan hissed, making Yaz giggle.

“Well, I guess...” Graham sighed, shrugging his shoulders once. “I mean, if that's how it is...”

“Seriously?” Ryan asked.

“I don't know,” Graham replied, a smile spreading on his face. “But we all noticed she seemed sad, right? And closed off and distant and evading all the time and with him, she seems... different? And it reminds me of your grandma. She made me feel that way, you know? Different. Better.”

“Everyone would feel better next to him,” Ryan replied, sounding a bit offended but the Doctor raised her hand at that, tone cold when she spoke next.

“No. I'm not. I'm not better than him in the slightest. That's just the thing. I've done horrible things. Things I've run away from half my life. He might've embraced the things he's done, faced them, but I couldn't. But we're equals and we're always gonna be. If you accept me, you accept him, because he's part of who I am, always has been and he knows me better than I know myself and right now, he's trying very, very hard to be a part of me that is easier to accept for all of you.”  
  
She gave him a grateful, quick smile and it made the Master's hearts skip a beat.

“So that's how it is now. Me and him or none of us. But that choice is yours and I'd understand either way.”

“Honestly,” he heard the dull voice of Captain Jack Harkness from Graham's phone, eyes flicking down in surprise. “You can't talk her out of this, she's always been an idiot when it comes to the Master. Just stick around to pick up the pieces and keep her safe.”

“Thanks for the input,” the Master called dryly towards the phone, while Graham, blushing slightly, rushed to end the call, his hands almost letting it slip into the salad.

“Must've accidentally hit 'call' after all...” he muttered and for a moment, everyone laughed. The whole table, just laughing at the silly old grandpa with the phone problems and the Master, in the middle of his own laugh, caught himself freezing, hearts racing in silly, silly hope.

“It's fine with me,” Yaz announced, finally picking up her fork and poking around in her salad. “You love him, you trust him, I'm fine with it.”

He could see the Doctor's eyes widen as she regarded her.

“Really?”

“Really,” Yaz smiled, then gave the Master another quick look. “Like I said, I liked O.”

He forced himself to a first, hesitant smile to her and noticed her own lips twitching shortly, before she turned back to her salad.

A start, he figured. It was a start.

Ryan, looking from Graham to Yaz and back again, sighed.

“I... I... oh fine.”

They grinned at him.

Underneath the table, he felt the Doctor's hand search for his, wrap around it and squeeze once. The Master, for a second, wasn't sure what to say, wasn't sure his voice would even carry him if he tried.

Then Jack's voice was audible from the inside of Graham's pocket.

“Great, so glad we settled that, so now can we talk about how I wasn't invited for dinner?”  
  
Graham, blushing violently now, hastily searched for his phone, but the Master simply rolled his eyes.

“It was a big, nosy duck. Swing your ass over, Harkness.”

“Already on my way!”

The smile the Doctor gave him was brighter than the sun.

It would work, the Master realised with a sudden wave of joy rolling over him. It really was going to work.

Ryan was frowning.

“What do you mean, a nosy duck? You didn't catch the duck yourself, did you?”

The Master simply gave him his sweetest smile.

“There are three different rules the Doctor gave me for tonight that ban me from answering this question honestly.”

Ryan looked from left to right, eyes wide and the Doctor broke out into giggles.

“He's joking.”

“Oh.”   
  
They all laughed at that, finally eating their salads, the atmosphere at the table clearly lifting to one of cheerfulness.

The Doctor gave him a side glance before slipping into his mind.

“ _You_ _ **were**_ _joking, right_?”

“ _Honey_ ,” he replied while getting up to get the duck. “ _There are some things you're better off not knowing_.”


End file.
